Post by Deleted on Nov 24, 2013 14:58:31 GMT -5
Dear Reader,
I would like to inform the lot of you that Mr. Gable will not be appearing at any house shows for WCF until after this mysterious Slam Potluck. He has decided (with the exception of this Sunday) to take the week off for personal matters he did not wish to discuss. But he wanted me to let everyone know that he has never felt sharper, fitter or more destructive than he does now, even after losing the Tag titles (which he does not blame Waylon or Benjamin for even though his contact with them has been sparse as of recent) and would like it stated for the record that all this means is he will be coming to Slam with full expectations of annihilating anyone who is thrown at him. Whether it be Jonny Fly or Adam Young, he will decimate them all the same. In fact he hopes for a chance at a Battle Royal in hopes to prove he has not missed a step in his training and exercise. He even says he is excited for what is to come and can’t wait for another win under his belt.
He will never fear what the future has in store for him because he is a rock when the rest of the word shifts like grass. He is the foundation for innovation and revelation and will not shift for the biggest baddest badass in the locker room so come all ye who thinkths themselves worthy to go up against King Leukemia! For even though this king remains uncrowned, that does not mean he is not a ruler and whoever he faces this Sunday will be the one of many who have fallen to his iron fist.
So let it be written, so let it be done.
Sincerely, Randall Penn
Ugh, I need to stick to writing his material…almost embarrassing how he represents me.
4 Years in the Future…
I was on my way to the prison holding Mr. Down in hopes of convincing him to keep our shared secret quiet. Hophni was hesitant about me going. He said something didn’t feel right and that there are worse things than bad press. I told him he had no idea how bad it was…It still struck me as weird since I could have sworn he was there but never-the-less I still had to go. But before I left him, he told me a story.
Hophni: A man wakes up in miles and miles of prairie fields with a few small specks in the distance with smoke emerging and expanding above them. The man doesn’t remember who or where he is. He awoke wearing a large potato sack with a small rope tied around his waist and “A Papist Labourer” on the front in red paint. “What was a papist labourer?” the man wonders. Is he a papist labourer? Is that even a real title? He wouldn’t be able to tell you a thing about it if it was. Any memory he tries to form just fall apart as fast as he can envision it, never to return to him. He can’t even remember how he ended up in the middle of the field. His hair was short and his beard was shaved so he couldn’t have been there for long. He decides to walk to one of the specks in the distance in hopes to find answers to his questions. The bottom of the man’s feet becomes sore as he runs to reach the ever growing village. He finally reaches the edge of the village when he realizes that those who saw him either ignored him or gave him dirty looks. He was puzzled by the overall negative greetings that seemed to get worse the further he gets into the village. People would spit and curse and mock as most would yell “It’s that dastardly Papist Labourer…How dare he show his ugly mug here after what he did...We should hang him for returning…” He begs to know what is going on but they just continued to spit and curse at him like he was shame and guilt wrapped in flesh. He continues to march through town, attempting to hide until he could find someone that could give him answers. He eventually finds himself hiding out behind a small cottage where he finds a woman leaning out the window staring at him with a mischievous grin. Her hair hung over her right eye as she tilts her head in curiosity. She backs away from the window and walks around the rickety building. The man is weary of her approach and keeps his distance. She asks if he recognizes her but he only shakes his head. She says it was no surprise to her after what happened. That anyone who did what he did should consider themselves lucky they are alive.
For a moment Hophni paused and stared into the distance like he was lost in thought. After a moment, he shook it off.
Hophni: He asks her what he did but she just laughs. She tells him that if she was him, she would be anywhere but here. The man contemplates leaving but before he could make a decision, she grabs him by the collar of his attire and pulls him close to her. She tells him that she completely understood why he did what he did and asks him if he would like to come inside. He was eager to hide so he nods and follows her around the shack to the door. She snickers which seemed odd to him but he shrugged it off since nothing really made sense to him. But when she opens the door, a well-built man who stood at seven feet and wielding an ax jumps passed the threshold and swings right at the papist labourer. Luckily the swing was uncalculated and missed. The memory-less man circles around and unconsciously got himself pinned against the wall of the cottage. The tall, hostile man swings again but the papist labourer ducks so the axe cuts right into the pathetic molding would of the cottage, all the while, the female screaming to murder the bastard. As the man pulls out his axe, the beam busted and the support was compromised as the wall falls towards the spit-fire woman. The papist labourer jumps towards her and knocks her out of the way of the house, saving her life. He was certain this would be taken as an act of change so he stands up and faces the attacker with his chest out hoping to be met with praise and thanks but after the attacker stops freighting over his house falling apart, he looks at the labourer with fiery eyes and blames him for the damage. He swings wildly, chasing after the innocent man until he is finally ran out of town.
Hophni appeared as if he had grown more stern and dead pan as if he was rehearsing this story for a much bigger crowd.
Hophni: The Papist Labourer vowed to never do wrong again as long as he lived and never to return to such a hateful village if he can help it. He walks on as a shadow of the world, he tip toes around you and rebuilds what is crumbling without you even noticing, he fights those who prey on the weak and he fends of the creatures of the night. But even with all this he chooses not to show his face again in fear of riling up the anger he left behind.
I pondered on the story for a moment but it didn’t seem to make much sense to me. Sounded like one of the fables lost in time because a lack of relevance.
John Gable: But what did he do?
Hophni sighed and shook his head.
Hophni: It doesn’t matter what he did. The point is that no matter what you did, there is the future and no matter what you do from here on out, there will always be the past. I beg you to just leave the whole thing alone and walk away.
…But I couldn’t…
8 Years Earlier…
It was near the end of production and everything was going nerve rackingly smooth. It always made me wonder when everything went according to plan. You want to know what movies were right on schedule? The Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers movie, Starwars one through three, and anything directed by Ulli Lommel. Some of the greatest works were made masterpieces through limitation and tragedy. Francis Ford Coppola threatened to kill himself multiple times while filming Apocalypse Now which they shot in the Philippines where many of the military sets were destroyed by a hurricane. Not to mention Marlon Brando showed up like the fat fuck he is without ever having read the script. But despite all those things the film is a masterpiece and the volatility on set was very apparent within the film. So, I had my reason to worry at the time. I already despised the director and the producer would be more useful as a fake plant. “My New Home” wasn’t getting much hype from film news or film lovers and almost seemed as if there was an intentional apathy spreading around about which made most of us feel uneasy and some of us considered quitting, but the producer’s brother was a lawyer which meant these contracts were “ironclad”…Read everything, kids. So, the majority of us swallowed our prides and looked to get this inevitable doom behind them as soon as possible while others (I.E. Humphrey Craig) tried to get themselves fired.
I walked out the doors of Cleveland, Ohio’s North by Northwest Airlines airport. I saw Alexis and Humphrey waiting by a taxi with a sign with “Stupid Face” written on it, which was a temporary nickname they gave me after an unfortunate incident was the Hair and Make-up department when some amateur gave me the ugliest latex face I had ever seen causing me to go off; phrasing the make –up work as “Stupid Face”…She didn’t receive an apology but sadly I still had a job.
We took the taxi to my place to stay until we had to fly out to New York the next day. It didn’t bother me at the time because I still considered them my friends and my closest ones at that. Without them, I don’t think I would have made it through the shoot of that film without killing someone. But alas, there are friends you make because there are only so many like you in the world and then there are friends you make because you have a common enemy. The problem with the latter is once that enemy is gone, you have a few unrecognizable familiar faces you have to decide whether they are enemies or associates.
The moonlight poured into a dark hallway as I opened the door into my (at that point) new home. Alexis pushed pass me with a giddy enthusiasm.
Alexis Evanovich: So this is the home of the humorless Stupid Face…Not bad. Though, I had you pegged as a contemporary kind of guy. Wasn’t expecting all the classical furniture.
She was making notice of the two hundred year old coffee and dining room tables along with a couple of wooden statuettes as she plopped her bags in the recliner and fell on to the couch. Humphrey wondered the room.
Humphrey Craig: Kind of makes sense now that I’m thinking about it.
John Gable: They’re family heirlooms…
I burnt them to ashes when I moved out. I hate how people try to keep the past alive. They’re dead, move on already.
We decided it would be funny to do a reading of the script while playing a drinking game. Everytime a character explained what was going on to an almost absurd level, drink. Everytime the word vagabond, drink. Every time a joke was unfunny, rip out the page and drink. It was safe to say that if we went through the whole script, we would have died from alcohol poisoning. Part way through, we had broken off from our game with a tangent about how the production assistant looked like a Michael Cera impersonator and then our lives before acting.
Alexis Evanovich: I was a singer in choir and people told me I had the ability to break into the business but I couldn’t stand the people. Though, maybe it was me at the time. I wasn’t always the nicest person in the world.
Humphrey Craig: Meh, no one was all that great when they were younger. I got in my fair share of trouble. One time in elementary school, there was this kid who always had to be the first out to recess. He would push people out of the way and trip other kids just to he would reach the doors first. So, one day we dug a small ditch at the bottom of the steps so when he rushed down his foot got caught in the ditch and broke his leg. Though after that, he never bothered to be first again.
We all laughed heartily as the night began to disperse as the sun peered over the horizon, but we didn’t take notice and if we did we pretended not to notice since none of us really felt like sleeping.
Alexis Evanovich: What about you, Stupid Face? What were you like when you were younger? Who was John Gable?
My laughing ceased as I looked over to Alexis not moving my head an inch.
John Gable: We should probably get some sleep. We have a plane to catch tomorrow.
Alexis Evanovich: Oh c’mon, what do you have to hide? Can’t be that bad.
John Gable: If we unearthed everything, there would be nothing for the worms to find.
Alexis sat up straight in a mocking sort of posture with a smile as Humphrey laid back onto the floor with an exasperated sigh.
Alexis Evanovich: You know Mr. Gable, you use a lot of fancy rhetoric and phrases but I’m afraid I don’t know what a word of it means. It all sounds clever and thought out but honestly I don’t think it means anything I think you just want someone to believe you’re mysterious and wise beyond your years. But ya’ know what? Wisdom means you have no reason to be scared of being honest. Now will you please answer the question?
John Gable: Ms. Evanovich, you misunderstand me. I have no intention of making you think I’m smarter than I truly am. I just have no wish to answer your question for the sake of your time since me then and me now are completely different entities. If I were to tell you a story about a younger me, there would be no correlation to me now and then you would consider me a liar.
Alexis Evanovich: Your logic has been skewed by the booze methinks. How about you tell the story and I’ll be the judge.
Humphrey blurted out a smothered snort that broke into a full snore. It was officially too late into the morning to continue our discussion and we both acknowledge it as we looked to Humphrey then back to each other. Alexis replied with a sigh to my waiting expression.
Alexis Evanovich: You win this time, Mr. Gable, but don’t think this is over. I’m going to crack this shell of yours eventually.
I stood up and stretched out to let the statement pass like I didn’t hear it.
John Gable: There is a guest room down the hall if you want to use it.
Alexis Evanovich: What about Humphrey?
John Gable: Leave him, he looks comfy on the floor.
She chuckled as we both went to our rooms even though we had to get up in the next four hours. I didn’t bother sleeping. It wouldn’t have mattered much since alcohol stifles the R.E.M. cycle. I starred at the ceiling as thoughts brewed in my head. Thoughts of all different realms of the mind. Some paranoid, some angry, some curious but altogether they built up a sort of frustration that was sure to explode. Actually remembering my past was an unpleasant ordeal and brought up such terrible thoughts like guilt, doubt, anxiety and self-loathing. I spent years trying not to be THAT person anymore. I swore that I suppressed if not killed that part of me. Most people would say the person you were has an effect on the person you become, but the only respect in which that was true was that I used that pathetic waste of a man to motivate me into something better, something precise, something truly invincible. At that moment I was so overwhelmed by my thoughts that I ended up jumping out of bed and sneaked outside where I hopped in my car and decided to go for an angry drive. Now, I hadn’t drank nearly as much as the other two but enough to not know this was a bad idea.
I pulled out with a squeal and went flying down the road. It seemed like a way to detach from myself and go crazy as an anonymous figure. I stared out into the darkness where my headlights stopped. The snow wisped through the light creating an even more obscuring view. I could feel the weight swing around as I zipped through turns and zoomed over bridges. I was amongst the fields when I felt the whole earth spinning in my head completely debilitating my ability to concentrate. I lost control of the wheel which sent the vehicle veering off the road into the guard rail. The car caught a post which sent it spinning into the field. When the vehicle came to a stop, I jumped out as puke spilled out of my stomach.
John Gable: FUCK! God damn it! NO NO NO!
I tried to get to my feet but my body couldn’t maintain balance. I crawled as far as I could which was at least a good distance away from the car but nowhere near my home. I decided to crawl into a ditch and pass out until morning...I was eventually found by Humphrey and Alexis then they bombarded me with questions I refused to answer. We ended up missing our flight and had to wait until the next day because I had to visit the hospital. We were bitched out but that hardly hung on our shoulders since we would have preferred to miss every flight out. I needed to move on and forget all of this. I would eventually get a new car and I called in my other car as stolen which they quickly found. Just sweep it under the rug and everything should be fine.
Present day…
It tore at me. I had never been so shaken in my life and the worst part is it was some nobody. He escaped my grasp and turned me into a sniveling child. I didn’t even land as much as a punch on him before he humiliated me. Every time I tried to fall asleep I would dream of him throwing me into that horrifying room. It gave me an uncontrollable feeling of dread anytime my mind wondered to it, but yet there was a part of me that want to face it head on again to give me any faith in myself. It took me a while to find but I eventually found it. The mind was panicked when faced with the inconsistency of having a negative 9 decibel level. It had no way of coping with the loss in sound so it reacted irrationally with hallucinations. Maybe if I understood that, I could beat it.
I stood in front of the door as my hand shook. I pushed through the red flags my mind was throwing up and opened the door. I stepped inside and took a seat on the uneven ground. I crossed my legs and tried to meditate. After a little while I felt a familiar draining feeling cloud my head. I struggled to open my eyes to find two people sitting in front of me. At first they came as silhouettes but then they took form oddly enough as me except one seemed to have a blood red tint and the other was a deep blue.
The red one tapped his foot in a rapid succession as he stared at me with a sardonically entertained smile. He whistled and snapped with a sort of hostile intent as he tried to grab my attention.
Red Gable: What are you hiding from?...Because you must be hiding from something if you choose to waste your time in here. You could be productive for once but you pussy out like the chicken shit you are. You are ruining it for all of us!
The blue one seemed uninterested in general as he laid back so lightly that it seemed like he weighed as much as a feather. He scoffed when I turned to him wondering what he had to say.
Blue Gable: Oh poor you. There are so many things going on in the world but somehow it always manages to be about you. If you want a real legacy to live on long after you are gone, then change something, fight for something, make your life mean more than some fake talent you flaunt at everybody.
The red one chuckled then shook his head in disapproval.
Red Gable: Why does it matter? You die and then it’s nothing but blackness so your “legacy” is shit. Live for what benefits you now which includes but is not limited to fucking shit up and making a god damn mess. You can’t just sit by and wait for the right moment because the right moment doesn’t make itself, you make it!
The blue one quickly got to his feet as if standing in protest as he looked displeased with the crimson Gable.
Blue Gable: Sure, you can indulge yourself all you want but it all goes to waste in the end and maybe even before you die. You don’t want to end up like some bum sleeping in a ditch, do you? No! Be someone better than the rest of these half-conscious ingrates.
The red one also stood to his feet but his steps were much heavier as they created a loud thud as he stepped around.
Red Gable: What the hell does it mean to be “better”? It is all perspective. When consider the strict nature of the world, legacies are none existent and were made-up to keep us busy. Why should we even care what people will think of us in the future let alone what people think of us now? No one lives forever, not even legends. Thousands of years from now, people won’t know what “Citizen Kane” is, they won’t know who Vincent Price is and they certainly won’t give a damn about some actor who became a wrestler who became a turkey related super hero. Why the fuck should we waste our time to be forgotten?
The blue one snarled as he turned away from the other one. The red one blurted out with laughter.
Red Gable: See, that is all you do. You pussy out when it gets a little heated while I am the one that has brought you this far kicking and screaming.
The blue one turned to me, trying to ignore the other’s thuds.
Blue Gable: You would have gotten us killed if it wasn’t for me! I keep us from reverting back to a more juvenile ideology. You remember how ridiculous and stupid you were before you buckled down and decided to be someone? Having a goal is the only thing that has kept you on track. Even acknowledging a future is what is going to get you where you need to be.
Red Gable: Yeah and what if you die before reaching your destination? Then all this time has been wasted! You can control yourself but you can’t control the universe. There is always one drunk driver, there is always one busted support beam and there is always one disease roaming around you while you least expect it. You can’t wait to get something! Take it now!
Blue Gable: You can’t live life like that!
The red one spat at the opposing Gable.
Red Gable: Shove it up your ass!
Blue Gable: You son of a bitch!
The blue Gable tackled the other which caused a loud BOOM to shake the room. They punched and kneed each other; once or twice they even grabbed each other by the throat and attempted to choke themselves out. I felt every last bit of it as they scuffled for what seemed like hours but was truly not that long at all. I could feel my anxiety building to an uncomfortable level. So, I closed my eyes as I tried to banish the image away. But then I heard a familiar yet unpleasant voice…
Michael Estepp: There is something I have always wondered about you…
I opened my eyes to see Michael sitting in his trademark psychiatrist chair with his fingers in a pyramid form. He stared at me with a humorless expression
Michael Estepp: Why did you choose to be Bawkman? I understand everything else. The turkey outbursts were merely a formality for revenge, almost a parody if you will. Your anger is very rooted in your ego and your humor seems to try and remove yourself from a situation. But even with all that in mind, I don’t understand why you want to be a hero…It seems like you try to be everything but when you are John. You hate people, you are apathetic towards any crisis that’s not your own and you destroy everything you touch. Why play the hero?
I was feeling ill and covered my ears as I brought my head to the ground trying to block him out. I wanted to scream I don’t know but I didn’t want to disrupt what was really just a silent empty room. I felt a hand caress the back of my neck…
Alexis Evanovich: Hey Stupid Face, what are you doing back in here?
I opened my eyes and lifted my head to see Alexis standing bent forward in front of me. She grinned with a sort of childish satisfaction. My anxiety plummeted as I studied the immense amount of detail my mind was able to retain. I sat there silently with my mouth hanging open like a mumblard. She took a seat in front of me with her legs crossed while switching to a light-hearted mocking frown.
Alexis Evanovich: Ya’ know…You never answered my question. I spent years trying to crack that shell but I never did. You were always so distant. Were we not really friends? Do you hate me the whole time we knew each other and only said something when it seemed convenient? I just want to know why you never trusted me enough to tell me anything.
I hesitated to speak as I opened my mouth. It would almost seem like throwing glass to the ground if I spoke at this point but I had a strong urge to let out even the smallest peep. She tilted her head with a curious look as she could see I wanted to say something.
John Gable:…No, it wasn’t that. I just…worked so hard to become better than that. I hated that I was ever young and foolish. I know everyone was the same in their own way but I never really forgave myself for being a kid. As far as I cared, I wanted people to think I just appeared at the age of twenty and moved forward from there. Even then I wish I could pick and choose to remove certain events from my life. Even when I think I came such a long way from who I was, I find myself still making the same mistakes. Driving my car into a post, joining wrestling, abandoning everyone I knew, losing to an opponent like Cheetah Fighter, teaming with Rebellion, flop after flop after flop.
She leaned forward and flicked me on the nose.
Alexis Evanovich: You are so odd sometimes. You realize half the shit you say makes sense to no one but yourself? The point to life is not getting it right. It’s about surviving and being with people you survived it with.
I looked away from Alexis. My head felt so light and everything seemed so crippling at that very moment. Suddenly everything I had done seemed to surround me. I wish I could live past the mistakes but I couldn’t just “live life” like so many people kept telling me. I could never go back to Alexis and Humphrey after I made such a fool of myself! Everyone made it sound so easy to just give in and move on but I could never go back.
Alexis Evanovich: Now will you please answer the question?
I looked back up to her as I felt my barriers start to fold.
John Gable: You wanna know who John Gable is? Fine, I’ll tell you…John Gable was a dumb little boy who always got himself into trouble without realizing it. He didn’t know a lick of Shakespeare and didn’t care for foreign films; he mostly just said dumb things and did even dumber things.
Alexis frowned. Even though she seemed to frown a lot in defeat when I would start talking, usually it wouldn’t bother me one bit, sometimes it even made me feel victorious. But this frown was different; it no longer seemed like defeat…It screamed disappointment as she shook her head. It cut deep into me like I never truly understood failure until now.
Alexis Evanovich: Gable…
I sighed and lowered my head. I no longer felt like being a vindictive prick.
John Gable: Fine…I was somewhat a trouble maker and all I wanted in life was a good laugh. I didn’t have any direction and I didn’t really want one. If I could have chosen then, I would have been a bum for the rest of my life and would still be hanging out with people I truly had no business hanging out with. My friends were those kinds of assholes that walked into a place without any regard for other bystanders. They were the kind of people who would fuck with employees and yell at them for the hell of it.
I shook my head as I could feel the guilt rising again.
John Gable: We got our rocks off by making people feel lower than us and eventually it bit us in the ass. One day we decided to walk around the city in some not so well-kept areas where we would fuck with people and play these immature pranks. We eventually poked the wrong person. This guy was a solid built brick shit house and we pissed him off really bad. We ran as he chased after us yelling threats. I had stumbled and fallen behind right before reaching the car. None of them turned back to help me, they all just hopped in and sped off. I was left to face the consequences as the man caught up to me and started laying in punch after punch to my ribs and face. Luckily he didn’t kill me and after a trip to the hospital, which only seems all too common now, I decided I needed to change my life if I didn’t want to repeat an incident like that. So after what seemed like endless searching, I eventually found a calling in film. But much to my dismay I was still the same person I was beforehand. Ridiculing person after person on set and making my demands known to the whole set. I don’t think this goal made me into a better person at all. Now I try to find a new me every turn in the road because I don’t want to make the same mistake.
I felt her hand lift my head so my eyes met hers like a Death Star tractor beam.
Alexis Evanovich:…I forgive you.
I suddenly became angry as my head felt completely empty and my body felt like it swayed even though I could visibly see I wasn’t moving. I felt the room spin slowly as I fought to center myself. I stood up to try and shake off the layer of sickness but I almost stumbled as I got to my feet.
John Gable: It doesn’t fucking matter, you aren’t real! This is all bullshit, it’s all fake, get the fuck away from me.
I turned away as I grasped my head trying to rid of the emptiness. I heard no protest from my imagination and the impenetrable silence resumed…until…
John Down: Ah, so I see you came back for more.
My heart sank as I turned around to see John Down standing before me. But it wasn’t him I saw. What was in front of me was a huge, almost formless, monster that looked melted into the wall and mutated with boils and random limbs sticking out of the spaces in between its tentacle-like cover with a giant singular eye in the center staring back at me.
John Down: I told you I would be there whenever you felt pain! I told you that you will only think of me when you stare tragedy in the face. So tell me Mr. Actor-man, what does tragedy look like?
I kept trying to tell myself it was fake but my mind was too far gone to believe such a thing. The monster grew as the room began to shrink.
John Down: So weak and feeble like always…Why don’t they just kill you if you are such a pain in the ass? I would have gotten rid of you when I had the chance but then I wouldn’t have gotten paid. You are hardly worth losing a paycheck over.
I panicked. I turned to the door and exited the room as fast as I could. As soon as I was out, I dropped to my knees and pounded both my fists on the floor.
John Gable: God damn it! Fuck it all!
4 years later…
I finally reached the prison holding the bastard just before the end of visiting hours. If they had known what he had done, they would have put him in a maximum security prison for the rest of his life but unfortunate, and lucky enough, for me, they had no idea. I made my way through all the procedures and searches then I found myself waiting at a small table as I watched all the people around me visiting a loved one or family member. Did John Down even have family? Would he even come out to see a visitor if he got one?
My question was quickly answered when I heard a door creak open and slam shut. I saw Mr. Down in an orange jumpsuit with his hands cuffed behind his back. The guard led over to the table and uncuffed him. He took his seat as the guard apathetically backed away. We sat in silence for a minute or two before something was said.
John Down: So, I assume you didn’t come here because you missed me.
I breathed deep before responding.
John Gable: I know you are getting out soon…If I had it my way, you’d be stuck in here forever but that is not my point…I wanna know if you are going to keep quiet about what happened. Because if you told anyone, it wouldn’t just be my ass that would get chewed out, you would be right back in here if not in a more secure location…
He scoffed as he looked over at the guard.
John Down: You mean that time you let those people die?
I lowered my head as a knee jerk reaction as if it would somehow help me hide from the comment.
John Gable: Shh! Look, I was trying to save them and it was you who put them in that situation. If it wasn’t for the circumstance, we would both be in here regardless. I just want to know if we are going to move on and go our separate ways or if I am going to have to take care of this another way.
He laughed heartily which made me peer over at the guard to make sure he wasn’t becoming suspicious. Luckily, he looked like he couldn’t care less.
John Down: We will never be able to truly go our separate ways as you will soon realize. Our pasts are intertwine with a very serious event and even if I were to disappear, I fear that I have sunken too deep into your mind to forget about me even then. You coming here is proof enough of the fact.
John Gable: LOOK!...look, I almost forgot about you with the exception of yesterday but what you did to me caused me to have an episode a while ago and I think it will happen again if we don’t finish this right here and now!
He cracked his neck as he leaned the chair back.
John Down: That’s very interesting. Do you mean the room I shoved you in, the beating I unleashed on you, the humiliation I put you through or…
John Gable: You know damn well what I mean! It’s fucking with me!
John Down: Interesting, I had heard of it having lasting affects but never heard of it happening after such a long time of nothing…Very interesting.
John Gable: I came here for an answer! Now please answer the question!
He sighed as he looked around the auditorium with an expression of boredom.
John Down: No, I don’t think I will answer…I have been bored sitting in this hell and now knowing I keep you up at night gives me joy I haven’t felt in a long time.
He stood up and walked to the guard to be handcuffed.
John Down: I’ll be seeing in the future my actor friend. Until then, don’t let the bed bugs bite too hard.
The guard placed John Down’s arms behind his back and cuffed them as they walked away.
John Down: Goodbye Mr. Actor-man. Until next time…
With that, he exited the visiting area. I was beyond frustrated as I left the prison. I was almost certain he wasn’t going to tell anybody but it wouldn’t be beyond him to sacrifice his own freedom to bring down someone else. I guess I would just have to keep an eye on him for now.
But, as I was walking away, there was a loud explosion that shook the whole area. I turned around to see a chuck of the facility had been taken out and a helicopter was lowering near it. A rope ladder dropped into the hole. As the helicopter lifted, my heart sank as I saw John Down being lifted in the air with the security guard passed out in his arms. Before I could even process what happened, the helicopter took off into the distance.
John Gable: NO! This can’t be happening!
At that moment I knew I had to do something I didn’t want to ever do again…
DUNA-NA! Titititititititi…DUNA-NA…VEEEEEEEEEEEER!!!
…To be continued with…
The BAWK KNIGHT RISES!
I would like to inform the lot of you that Mr. Gable will not be appearing at any house shows for WCF until after this mysterious Slam Potluck. He has decided (with the exception of this Sunday) to take the week off for personal matters he did not wish to discuss. But he wanted me to let everyone know that he has never felt sharper, fitter or more destructive than he does now, even after losing the Tag titles (which he does not blame Waylon or Benjamin for even though his contact with them has been sparse as of recent) and would like it stated for the record that all this means is he will be coming to Slam with full expectations of annihilating anyone who is thrown at him. Whether it be Jonny Fly or Adam Young, he will decimate them all the same. In fact he hopes for a chance at a Battle Royal in hopes to prove he has not missed a step in his training and exercise. He even says he is excited for what is to come and can’t wait for another win under his belt.
He will never fear what the future has in store for him because he is a rock when the rest of the word shifts like grass. He is the foundation for innovation and revelation and will not shift for the biggest baddest badass in the locker room so come all ye who thinkths themselves worthy to go up against King Leukemia! For even though this king remains uncrowned, that does not mean he is not a ruler and whoever he faces this Sunday will be the one of many who have fallen to his iron fist.
So let it be written, so let it be done.
Sincerely, Randall Penn
Ugh, I need to stick to writing his material…almost embarrassing how he represents me.
4 Years in the Future…
I was on my way to the prison holding Mr. Down in hopes of convincing him to keep our shared secret quiet. Hophni was hesitant about me going. He said something didn’t feel right and that there are worse things than bad press. I told him he had no idea how bad it was…It still struck me as weird since I could have sworn he was there but never-the-less I still had to go. But before I left him, he told me a story.
Hophni: A man wakes up in miles and miles of prairie fields with a few small specks in the distance with smoke emerging and expanding above them. The man doesn’t remember who or where he is. He awoke wearing a large potato sack with a small rope tied around his waist and “A Papist Labourer” on the front in red paint. “What was a papist labourer?” the man wonders. Is he a papist labourer? Is that even a real title? He wouldn’t be able to tell you a thing about it if it was. Any memory he tries to form just fall apart as fast as he can envision it, never to return to him. He can’t even remember how he ended up in the middle of the field. His hair was short and his beard was shaved so he couldn’t have been there for long. He decides to walk to one of the specks in the distance in hopes to find answers to his questions. The bottom of the man’s feet becomes sore as he runs to reach the ever growing village. He finally reaches the edge of the village when he realizes that those who saw him either ignored him or gave him dirty looks. He was puzzled by the overall negative greetings that seemed to get worse the further he gets into the village. People would spit and curse and mock as most would yell “It’s that dastardly Papist Labourer…How dare he show his ugly mug here after what he did...We should hang him for returning…” He begs to know what is going on but they just continued to spit and curse at him like he was shame and guilt wrapped in flesh. He continues to march through town, attempting to hide until he could find someone that could give him answers. He eventually finds himself hiding out behind a small cottage where he finds a woman leaning out the window staring at him with a mischievous grin. Her hair hung over her right eye as she tilts her head in curiosity. She backs away from the window and walks around the rickety building. The man is weary of her approach and keeps his distance. She asks if he recognizes her but he only shakes his head. She says it was no surprise to her after what happened. That anyone who did what he did should consider themselves lucky they are alive.
For a moment Hophni paused and stared into the distance like he was lost in thought. After a moment, he shook it off.
Hophni: He asks her what he did but she just laughs. She tells him that if she was him, she would be anywhere but here. The man contemplates leaving but before he could make a decision, she grabs him by the collar of his attire and pulls him close to her. She tells him that she completely understood why he did what he did and asks him if he would like to come inside. He was eager to hide so he nods and follows her around the shack to the door. She snickers which seemed odd to him but he shrugged it off since nothing really made sense to him. But when she opens the door, a well-built man who stood at seven feet and wielding an ax jumps passed the threshold and swings right at the papist labourer. Luckily the swing was uncalculated and missed. The memory-less man circles around and unconsciously got himself pinned against the wall of the cottage. The tall, hostile man swings again but the papist labourer ducks so the axe cuts right into the pathetic molding would of the cottage, all the while, the female screaming to murder the bastard. As the man pulls out his axe, the beam busted and the support was compromised as the wall falls towards the spit-fire woman. The papist labourer jumps towards her and knocks her out of the way of the house, saving her life. He was certain this would be taken as an act of change so he stands up and faces the attacker with his chest out hoping to be met with praise and thanks but after the attacker stops freighting over his house falling apart, he looks at the labourer with fiery eyes and blames him for the damage. He swings wildly, chasing after the innocent man until he is finally ran out of town.
Hophni appeared as if he had grown more stern and dead pan as if he was rehearsing this story for a much bigger crowd.
Hophni: The Papist Labourer vowed to never do wrong again as long as he lived and never to return to such a hateful village if he can help it. He walks on as a shadow of the world, he tip toes around you and rebuilds what is crumbling without you even noticing, he fights those who prey on the weak and he fends of the creatures of the night. But even with all this he chooses not to show his face again in fear of riling up the anger he left behind.
I pondered on the story for a moment but it didn’t seem to make much sense to me. Sounded like one of the fables lost in time because a lack of relevance.
John Gable: But what did he do?
Hophni sighed and shook his head.
Hophni: It doesn’t matter what he did. The point is that no matter what you did, there is the future and no matter what you do from here on out, there will always be the past. I beg you to just leave the whole thing alone and walk away.
…But I couldn’t…
8 Years Earlier…
It was near the end of production and everything was going nerve rackingly smooth. It always made me wonder when everything went according to plan. You want to know what movies were right on schedule? The Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers movie, Starwars one through three, and anything directed by Ulli Lommel. Some of the greatest works were made masterpieces through limitation and tragedy. Francis Ford Coppola threatened to kill himself multiple times while filming Apocalypse Now which they shot in the Philippines where many of the military sets were destroyed by a hurricane. Not to mention Marlon Brando showed up like the fat fuck he is without ever having read the script. But despite all those things the film is a masterpiece and the volatility on set was very apparent within the film. So, I had my reason to worry at the time. I already despised the director and the producer would be more useful as a fake plant. “My New Home” wasn’t getting much hype from film news or film lovers and almost seemed as if there was an intentional apathy spreading around about which made most of us feel uneasy and some of us considered quitting, but the producer’s brother was a lawyer which meant these contracts were “ironclad”…Read everything, kids. So, the majority of us swallowed our prides and looked to get this inevitable doom behind them as soon as possible while others (I.E. Humphrey Craig) tried to get themselves fired.
I walked out the doors of Cleveland, Ohio’s North by Northwest Airlines airport. I saw Alexis and Humphrey waiting by a taxi with a sign with “Stupid Face” written on it, which was a temporary nickname they gave me after an unfortunate incident was the Hair and Make-up department when some amateur gave me the ugliest latex face I had ever seen causing me to go off; phrasing the make –up work as “Stupid Face”…She didn’t receive an apology but sadly I still had a job.
We took the taxi to my place to stay until we had to fly out to New York the next day. It didn’t bother me at the time because I still considered them my friends and my closest ones at that. Without them, I don’t think I would have made it through the shoot of that film without killing someone. But alas, there are friends you make because there are only so many like you in the world and then there are friends you make because you have a common enemy. The problem with the latter is once that enemy is gone, you have a few unrecognizable familiar faces you have to decide whether they are enemies or associates.
The moonlight poured into a dark hallway as I opened the door into my (at that point) new home. Alexis pushed pass me with a giddy enthusiasm.
Alexis Evanovich: So this is the home of the humorless Stupid Face…Not bad. Though, I had you pegged as a contemporary kind of guy. Wasn’t expecting all the classical furniture.
She was making notice of the two hundred year old coffee and dining room tables along with a couple of wooden statuettes as she plopped her bags in the recliner and fell on to the couch. Humphrey wondered the room.
Humphrey Craig: Kind of makes sense now that I’m thinking about it.
John Gable: They’re family heirlooms…
I burnt them to ashes when I moved out. I hate how people try to keep the past alive. They’re dead, move on already.
We decided it would be funny to do a reading of the script while playing a drinking game. Everytime a character explained what was going on to an almost absurd level, drink. Everytime the word vagabond, drink. Every time a joke was unfunny, rip out the page and drink. It was safe to say that if we went through the whole script, we would have died from alcohol poisoning. Part way through, we had broken off from our game with a tangent about how the production assistant looked like a Michael Cera impersonator and then our lives before acting.
Alexis Evanovich: I was a singer in choir and people told me I had the ability to break into the business but I couldn’t stand the people. Though, maybe it was me at the time. I wasn’t always the nicest person in the world.
Humphrey Craig: Meh, no one was all that great when they were younger. I got in my fair share of trouble. One time in elementary school, there was this kid who always had to be the first out to recess. He would push people out of the way and trip other kids just to he would reach the doors first. So, one day we dug a small ditch at the bottom of the steps so when he rushed down his foot got caught in the ditch and broke his leg. Though after that, he never bothered to be first again.
We all laughed heartily as the night began to disperse as the sun peered over the horizon, but we didn’t take notice and if we did we pretended not to notice since none of us really felt like sleeping.
Alexis Evanovich: What about you, Stupid Face? What were you like when you were younger? Who was John Gable?
My laughing ceased as I looked over to Alexis not moving my head an inch.
John Gable: We should probably get some sleep. We have a plane to catch tomorrow.
Alexis Evanovich: Oh c’mon, what do you have to hide? Can’t be that bad.
John Gable: If we unearthed everything, there would be nothing for the worms to find.
Alexis sat up straight in a mocking sort of posture with a smile as Humphrey laid back onto the floor with an exasperated sigh.
Alexis Evanovich: You know Mr. Gable, you use a lot of fancy rhetoric and phrases but I’m afraid I don’t know what a word of it means. It all sounds clever and thought out but honestly I don’t think it means anything I think you just want someone to believe you’re mysterious and wise beyond your years. But ya’ know what? Wisdom means you have no reason to be scared of being honest. Now will you please answer the question?
John Gable: Ms. Evanovich, you misunderstand me. I have no intention of making you think I’m smarter than I truly am. I just have no wish to answer your question for the sake of your time since me then and me now are completely different entities. If I were to tell you a story about a younger me, there would be no correlation to me now and then you would consider me a liar.
Alexis Evanovich: Your logic has been skewed by the booze methinks. How about you tell the story and I’ll be the judge.
Humphrey blurted out a smothered snort that broke into a full snore. It was officially too late into the morning to continue our discussion and we both acknowledge it as we looked to Humphrey then back to each other. Alexis replied with a sigh to my waiting expression.
Alexis Evanovich: You win this time, Mr. Gable, but don’t think this is over. I’m going to crack this shell of yours eventually.
I stood up and stretched out to let the statement pass like I didn’t hear it.
John Gable: There is a guest room down the hall if you want to use it.
Alexis Evanovich: What about Humphrey?
John Gable: Leave him, he looks comfy on the floor.
She chuckled as we both went to our rooms even though we had to get up in the next four hours. I didn’t bother sleeping. It wouldn’t have mattered much since alcohol stifles the R.E.M. cycle. I starred at the ceiling as thoughts brewed in my head. Thoughts of all different realms of the mind. Some paranoid, some angry, some curious but altogether they built up a sort of frustration that was sure to explode. Actually remembering my past was an unpleasant ordeal and brought up such terrible thoughts like guilt, doubt, anxiety and self-loathing. I spent years trying not to be THAT person anymore. I swore that I suppressed if not killed that part of me. Most people would say the person you were has an effect on the person you become, but the only respect in which that was true was that I used that pathetic waste of a man to motivate me into something better, something precise, something truly invincible. At that moment I was so overwhelmed by my thoughts that I ended up jumping out of bed and sneaked outside where I hopped in my car and decided to go for an angry drive. Now, I hadn’t drank nearly as much as the other two but enough to not know this was a bad idea.
I pulled out with a squeal and went flying down the road. It seemed like a way to detach from myself and go crazy as an anonymous figure. I stared out into the darkness where my headlights stopped. The snow wisped through the light creating an even more obscuring view. I could feel the weight swing around as I zipped through turns and zoomed over bridges. I was amongst the fields when I felt the whole earth spinning in my head completely debilitating my ability to concentrate. I lost control of the wheel which sent the vehicle veering off the road into the guard rail. The car caught a post which sent it spinning into the field. When the vehicle came to a stop, I jumped out as puke spilled out of my stomach.
John Gable: FUCK! God damn it! NO NO NO!
I tried to get to my feet but my body couldn’t maintain balance. I crawled as far as I could which was at least a good distance away from the car but nowhere near my home. I decided to crawl into a ditch and pass out until morning...I was eventually found by Humphrey and Alexis then they bombarded me with questions I refused to answer. We ended up missing our flight and had to wait until the next day because I had to visit the hospital. We were bitched out but that hardly hung on our shoulders since we would have preferred to miss every flight out. I needed to move on and forget all of this. I would eventually get a new car and I called in my other car as stolen which they quickly found. Just sweep it under the rug and everything should be fine.
Present day…
It tore at me. I had never been so shaken in my life and the worst part is it was some nobody. He escaped my grasp and turned me into a sniveling child. I didn’t even land as much as a punch on him before he humiliated me. Every time I tried to fall asleep I would dream of him throwing me into that horrifying room. It gave me an uncontrollable feeling of dread anytime my mind wondered to it, but yet there was a part of me that want to face it head on again to give me any faith in myself. It took me a while to find but I eventually found it. The mind was panicked when faced with the inconsistency of having a negative 9 decibel level. It had no way of coping with the loss in sound so it reacted irrationally with hallucinations. Maybe if I understood that, I could beat it.
I stood in front of the door as my hand shook. I pushed through the red flags my mind was throwing up and opened the door. I stepped inside and took a seat on the uneven ground. I crossed my legs and tried to meditate. After a little while I felt a familiar draining feeling cloud my head. I struggled to open my eyes to find two people sitting in front of me. At first they came as silhouettes but then they took form oddly enough as me except one seemed to have a blood red tint and the other was a deep blue.
The red one tapped his foot in a rapid succession as he stared at me with a sardonically entertained smile. He whistled and snapped with a sort of hostile intent as he tried to grab my attention.
Red Gable: What are you hiding from?...Because you must be hiding from something if you choose to waste your time in here. You could be productive for once but you pussy out like the chicken shit you are. You are ruining it for all of us!
The blue one seemed uninterested in general as he laid back so lightly that it seemed like he weighed as much as a feather. He scoffed when I turned to him wondering what he had to say.
Blue Gable: Oh poor you. There are so many things going on in the world but somehow it always manages to be about you. If you want a real legacy to live on long after you are gone, then change something, fight for something, make your life mean more than some fake talent you flaunt at everybody.
The red one chuckled then shook his head in disapproval.
Red Gable: Why does it matter? You die and then it’s nothing but blackness so your “legacy” is shit. Live for what benefits you now which includes but is not limited to fucking shit up and making a god damn mess. You can’t just sit by and wait for the right moment because the right moment doesn’t make itself, you make it!
The blue one quickly got to his feet as if standing in protest as he looked displeased with the crimson Gable.
Blue Gable: Sure, you can indulge yourself all you want but it all goes to waste in the end and maybe even before you die. You don’t want to end up like some bum sleeping in a ditch, do you? No! Be someone better than the rest of these half-conscious ingrates.
The red one also stood to his feet but his steps were much heavier as they created a loud thud as he stepped around.
Red Gable: What the hell does it mean to be “better”? It is all perspective. When consider the strict nature of the world, legacies are none existent and were made-up to keep us busy. Why should we even care what people will think of us in the future let alone what people think of us now? No one lives forever, not even legends. Thousands of years from now, people won’t know what “Citizen Kane” is, they won’t know who Vincent Price is and they certainly won’t give a damn about some actor who became a wrestler who became a turkey related super hero. Why the fuck should we waste our time to be forgotten?
The blue one snarled as he turned away from the other one. The red one blurted out with laughter.
Red Gable: See, that is all you do. You pussy out when it gets a little heated while I am the one that has brought you this far kicking and screaming.
The blue one turned to me, trying to ignore the other’s thuds.
Blue Gable: You would have gotten us killed if it wasn’t for me! I keep us from reverting back to a more juvenile ideology. You remember how ridiculous and stupid you were before you buckled down and decided to be someone? Having a goal is the only thing that has kept you on track. Even acknowledging a future is what is going to get you where you need to be.
Red Gable: Yeah and what if you die before reaching your destination? Then all this time has been wasted! You can control yourself but you can’t control the universe. There is always one drunk driver, there is always one busted support beam and there is always one disease roaming around you while you least expect it. You can’t wait to get something! Take it now!
Blue Gable: You can’t live life like that!
The red one spat at the opposing Gable.
Red Gable: Shove it up your ass!
Blue Gable: You son of a bitch!
The blue Gable tackled the other which caused a loud BOOM to shake the room. They punched and kneed each other; once or twice they even grabbed each other by the throat and attempted to choke themselves out. I felt every last bit of it as they scuffled for what seemed like hours but was truly not that long at all. I could feel my anxiety building to an uncomfortable level. So, I closed my eyes as I tried to banish the image away. But then I heard a familiar yet unpleasant voice…
Michael Estepp: There is something I have always wondered about you…
I opened my eyes to see Michael sitting in his trademark psychiatrist chair with his fingers in a pyramid form. He stared at me with a humorless expression
Michael Estepp: Why did you choose to be Bawkman? I understand everything else. The turkey outbursts were merely a formality for revenge, almost a parody if you will. Your anger is very rooted in your ego and your humor seems to try and remove yourself from a situation. But even with all that in mind, I don’t understand why you want to be a hero…It seems like you try to be everything but when you are John. You hate people, you are apathetic towards any crisis that’s not your own and you destroy everything you touch. Why play the hero?
I was feeling ill and covered my ears as I brought my head to the ground trying to block him out. I wanted to scream I don’t know but I didn’t want to disrupt what was really just a silent empty room. I felt a hand caress the back of my neck…
Alexis Evanovich: Hey Stupid Face, what are you doing back in here?
I opened my eyes and lifted my head to see Alexis standing bent forward in front of me. She grinned with a sort of childish satisfaction. My anxiety plummeted as I studied the immense amount of detail my mind was able to retain. I sat there silently with my mouth hanging open like a mumblard. She took a seat in front of me with her legs crossed while switching to a light-hearted mocking frown.
Alexis Evanovich: Ya’ know…You never answered my question. I spent years trying to crack that shell but I never did. You were always so distant. Were we not really friends? Do you hate me the whole time we knew each other and only said something when it seemed convenient? I just want to know why you never trusted me enough to tell me anything.
I hesitated to speak as I opened my mouth. It would almost seem like throwing glass to the ground if I spoke at this point but I had a strong urge to let out even the smallest peep. She tilted her head with a curious look as she could see I wanted to say something.
John Gable:…No, it wasn’t that. I just…worked so hard to become better than that. I hated that I was ever young and foolish. I know everyone was the same in their own way but I never really forgave myself for being a kid. As far as I cared, I wanted people to think I just appeared at the age of twenty and moved forward from there. Even then I wish I could pick and choose to remove certain events from my life. Even when I think I came such a long way from who I was, I find myself still making the same mistakes. Driving my car into a post, joining wrestling, abandoning everyone I knew, losing to an opponent like Cheetah Fighter, teaming with Rebellion, flop after flop after flop.
She leaned forward and flicked me on the nose.
Alexis Evanovich: You are so odd sometimes. You realize half the shit you say makes sense to no one but yourself? The point to life is not getting it right. It’s about surviving and being with people you survived it with.
I looked away from Alexis. My head felt so light and everything seemed so crippling at that very moment. Suddenly everything I had done seemed to surround me. I wish I could live past the mistakes but I couldn’t just “live life” like so many people kept telling me. I could never go back to Alexis and Humphrey after I made such a fool of myself! Everyone made it sound so easy to just give in and move on but I could never go back.
Alexis Evanovich: Now will you please answer the question?
I looked back up to her as I felt my barriers start to fold.
John Gable: You wanna know who John Gable is? Fine, I’ll tell you…John Gable was a dumb little boy who always got himself into trouble without realizing it. He didn’t know a lick of Shakespeare and didn’t care for foreign films; he mostly just said dumb things and did even dumber things.
Alexis frowned. Even though she seemed to frown a lot in defeat when I would start talking, usually it wouldn’t bother me one bit, sometimes it even made me feel victorious. But this frown was different; it no longer seemed like defeat…It screamed disappointment as she shook her head. It cut deep into me like I never truly understood failure until now.
Alexis Evanovich: Gable…
I sighed and lowered my head. I no longer felt like being a vindictive prick.
John Gable: Fine…I was somewhat a trouble maker and all I wanted in life was a good laugh. I didn’t have any direction and I didn’t really want one. If I could have chosen then, I would have been a bum for the rest of my life and would still be hanging out with people I truly had no business hanging out with. My friends were those kinds of assholes that walked into a place without any regard for other bystanders. They were the kind of people who would fuck with employees and yell at them for the hell of it.
I shook my head as I could feel the guilt rising again.
John Gable: We got our rocks off by making people feel lower than us and eventually it bit us in the ass. One day we decided to walk around the city in some not so well-kept areas where we would fuck with people and play these immature pranks. We eventually poked the wrong person. This guy was a solid built brick shit house and we pissed him off really bad. We ran as he chased after us yelling threats. I had stumbled and fallen behind right before reaching the car. None of them turned back to help me, they all just hopped in and sped off. I was left to face the consequences as the man caught up to me and started laying in punch after punch to my ribs and face. Luckily he didn’t kill me and after a trip to the hospital, which only seems all too common now, I decided I needed to change my life if I didn’t want to repeat an incident like that. So after what seemed like endless searching, I eventually found a calling in film. But much to my dismay I was still the same person I was beforehand. Ridiculing person after person on set and making my demands known to the whole set. I don’t think this goal made me into a better person at all. Now I try to find a new me every turn in the road because I don’t want to make the same mistake.
I felt her hand lift my head so my eyes met hers like a Death Star tractor beam.
Alexis Evanovich:…I forgive you.
I suddenly became angry as my head felt completely empty and my body felt like it swayed even though I could visibly see I wasn’t moving. I felt the room spin slowly as I fought to center myself. I stood up to try and shake off the layer of sickness but I almost stumbled as I got to my feet.
John Gable: It doesn’t fucking matter, you aren’t real! This is all bullshit, it’s all fake, get the fuck away from me.
I turned away as I grasped my head trying to rid of the emptiness. I heard no protest from my imagination and the impenetrable silence resumed…until…
John Down: Ah, so I see you came back for more.
My heart sank as I turned around to see John Down standing before me. But it wasn’t him I saw. What was in front of me was a huge, almost formless, monster that looked melted into the wall and mutated with boils and random limbs sticking out of the spaces in between its tentacle-like cover with a giant singular eye in the center staring back at me.
John Down: I told you I would be there whenever you felt pain! I told you that you will only think of me when you stare tragedy in the face. So tell me Mr. Actor-man, what does tragedy look like?
I kept trying to tell myself it was fake but my mind was too far gone to believe such a thing. The monster grew as the room began to shrink.
John Down: So weak and feeble like always…Why don’t they just kill you if you are such a pain in the ass? I would have gotten rid of you when I had the chance but then I wouldn’t have gotten paid. You are hardly worth losing a paycheck over.
I panicked. I turned to the door and exited the room as fast as I could. As soon as I was out, I dropped to my knees and pounded both my fists on the floor.
John Gable: God damn it! Fuck it all!
4 years later…
I finally reached the prison holding the bastard just before the end of visiting hours. If they had known what he had done, they would have put him in a maximum security prison for the rest of his life but unfortunate, and lucky enough, for me, they had no idea. I made my way through all the procedures and searches then I found myself waiting at a small table as I watched all the people around me visiting a loved one or family member. Did John Down even have family? Would he even come out to see a visitor if he got one?
My question was quickly answered when I heard a door creak open and slam shut. I saw Mr. Down in an orange jumpsuit with his hands cuffed behind his back. The guard led over to the table and uncuffed him. He took his seat as the guard apathetically backed away. We sat in silence for a minute or two before something was said.
John Down: So, I assume you didn’t come here because you missed me.
I breathed deep before responding.
John Gable: I know you are getting out soon…If I had it my way, you’d be stuck in here forever but that is not my point…I wanna know if you are going to keep quiet about what happened. Because if you told anyone, it wouldn’t just be my ass that would get chewed out, you would be right back in here if not in a more secure location…
He scoffed as he looked over at the guard.
John Down: You mean that time you let those people die?
I lowered my head as a knee jerk reaction as if it would somehow help me hide from the comment.
John Gable: Shh! Look, I was trying to save them and it was you who put them in that situation. If it wasn’t for the circumstance, we would both be in here regardless. I just want to know if we are going to move on and go our separate ways or if I am going to have to take care of this another way.
He laughed heartily which made me peer over at the guard to make sure he wasn’t becoming suspicious. Luckily, he looked like he couldn’t care less.
John Down: We will never be able to truly go our separate ways as you will soon realize. Our pasts are intertwine with a very serious event and even if I were to disappear, I fear that I have sunken too deep into your mind to forget about me even then. You coming here is proof enough of the fact.
John Gable: LOOK!...look, I almost forgot about you with the exception of yesterday but what you did to me caused me to have an episode a while ago and I think it will happen again if we don’t finish this right here and now!
He cracked his neck as he leaned the chair back.
John Down: That’s very interesting. Do you mean the room I shoved you in, the beating I unleashed on you, the humiliation I put you through or…
John Gable: You know damn well what I mean! It’s fucking with me!
John Down: Interesting, I had heard of it having lasting affects but never heard of it happening after such a long time of nothing…Very interesting.
John Gable: I came here for an answer! Now please answer the question!
He sighed as he looked around the auditorium with an expression of boredom.
John Down: No, I don’t think I will answer…I have been bored sitting in this hell and now knowing I keep you up at night gives me joy I haven’t felt in a long time.
He stood up and walked to the guard to be handcuffed.
John Down: I’ll be seeing in the future my actor friend. Until then, don’t let the bed bugs bite too hard.
The guard placed John Down’s arms behind his back and cuffed them as they walked away.
John Down: Goodbye Mr. Actor-man. Until next time…
With that, he exited the visiting area. I was beyond frustrated as I left the prison. I was almost certain he wasn’t going to tell anybody but it wouldn’t be beyond him to sacrifice his own freedom to bring down someone else. I guess I would just have to keep an eye on him for now.
But, as I was walking away, there was a loud explosion that shook the whole area. I turned around to see a chuck of the facility had been taken out and a helicopter was lowering near it. A rope ladder dropped into the hole. As the helicopter lifted, my heart sank as I saw John Down being lifted in the air with the security guard passed out in his arms. Before I could even process what happened, the helicopter took off into the distance.
John Gable: NO! This can’t be happening!
At that moment I knew I had to do something I didn’t want to ever do again…
DUNA-NA! Titititititititi…DUNA-NA…VEEEEEEEEEEEER!!!
…To be continued with…
The BAWK KNIGHT RISES!
