Post by Stormm on Oct 1, 2015 22:51:14 GMT -5
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Does Catie even know about this?
.......?
Justin?!
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The dirt roads that wove through Hangtown, like veins carrying the lifeline through a human body, on a normal night would have already gone dark. All the torches would have either burnt out or been put to rest; but that evening the blood moon rose. Yet, despite the eerie feel of the moonlight illuminating the streets, if Hangtown can even be more so than it already was, a man held a candle at arm’s length and zig-zagged swiftly from alley to alley. In his opposite hand he gripped a lonely manila envelope tightly.
As the Earth continued to move between the sun and moon on that night and the lunar eclipse was looming, Justin Michaels tried to move secretly through the empty town square. An eye always looking forward, the other looking over his shoulder. Hangtown had gone silent, while the rest of the Western Hemisphere was gazing at the sky.
The Force of Nature was never a man to run from a fight, to cower in fear, or to let anyone intimidate him, but for some reason he was running. Drastically looking for a place to hide, to read the file he was carrying, and to get away from whoever might have been following him, or perhaps from everyone.
A location that was welcoming just a few weeks ago, seemed to have changed its tune since then. Were the Dillingers hazing their newest accomplice? Was it further initiation to the Black Hand? Maybe it was Hangtown rejecting its newest citizen, if you could call him that.
It was ironic that while the mists of Deadly Intentions evanesced and Justin would soon march into battle against potentially every single Pure Class Wrestling superstar, he felt the breaths of every member of Hangtown on the back of his neck. The contents of the envelope were potentially too confidential for anyone but him to see, not even Grimm, Showtime, or even Sadistic.
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No, of course not! You're the first person I've told about any of this! The whole thing was supposed to be a secret, so much so that I couldn't even tell you about it!
How long has this been going on, and why did you wait until now to tell me about it?
It all started at the beginning of the year. We didn't want to risk everything by having too many people know, but it got to a point where I couldn't keep hiding anything from you without you starting to question what the hell was really going on.
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The dilemma being that the envelope was found right there in Hangtown. Its seal was still intact, but that still did not explain why it had been found, buried in a desk inside the house of Dillinger. Some may say that it was not Justin's to take, but the official letterhead of Southwind Gardens adorning the face of the yellow paper pouch would suggest otherwise.
What were the Dillingers up to? Could William or Phinehas be behind this? Was it Ruth, a woman Justin had yet to encounter in his visits to the malevolent utopia? The most likely suspect would be Michael Wryght planting such evidence for Justin to find. He was, after all, the man seen leaving the Sedgwick County Detention Facility the last time the Force of Nature went to visit the former doctor Sorrow, who could easily be another suspect, as he continues to run free.
Oh how the yarn tangles as it unravels.
But for being a man recruited into the Black Hand and sought after by three of the aforementioned four, it was still hard to trust any one of them and for very good reasons. There was little reason to trust anyone at that time with so much at stake. Justin was so close yet so far from Damian and the final two missing patients, an undertaking that would hopefully lead him to the missing Kaden Calix as well. On top of it all, a shot at the PCW World title was on the line as well, and everyone had their palms faced up hoping to be given that opportunity.
A match such as the Deadly Rumble was not to be approached as something that a victory was to be given to someone, but as such that only one would crawl away from when the smoke cleared. This was knowledge that Justin had obtained as one of few longstanding wrestlers on the roster who had never participated in the rumble itself. Sure it made it an even bigger mountain for him to climb to obtain that which has been kept from him for years now, especially when at you looked at those who would be sharing the squared circle with him.
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There is no part of this that doesn't scream certifiable, Justin!
I know, but if it works, we'll never have to worry about that son of a bitch ever again. So many people can move on with their lives, and others can get theirs back on track. Surely that is all worth the price that is being paid right now?
Yes, but if it doesn't work?
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His partner in crime from the newly christened Revelation, Grimm, was the man at the top of the list. No doubt another face from the Black Hand would make his presence known in the rumble as well. Michael Wryght hadn't missed an opportunity at winning an opportunity for as far back as the Force of Nature could recall. Together and with other foes in their way, they would surely act as one, but if and when it came down to it, there would be no love lost between the three of them when they were the last ones remaining in the match. After all, no matter how much gold was seen in their eyes the objective was to protect the World Championship from the non-believers.
In the unfortunate event that Sadistic should lose out to Saniti beforehand, there would also be the chance that he could find his way into that very match too. What a dire situation that would be. Then again, a Stormm comes and a Stormm goes, but without the Force of Nature there would be no Harvest. Everyone, even the people of Hangtown, would do well to be mindful of that.
But those were not the only men (or women) that would ultimately like to watch Justin and the rest of the Black Hand eat crow, especially if it meant dethroning those who have been seen as nothing but a menace to Pure Class Wrestling for nearly two years now. For when the utmost prize is at stake, there are none who don't have their hands grasping with outreached arms. To mention everyone that could be standing toe to toe with the Force of Nature in the near future would be to name everyone in the locker room and then some. Look at the roster from days past and present, and any one of them could and should be thought of as a potential opponent.
There were no thoughts safe from Justin's ever running conscious which was perhaps why he was so fickle on that night. Any number of reasons could lead to an infinite number of conclusions, but none he thought of ended favorably for him, so he continued in secret.
He had traversed the town square unseen even though nobody paid him a second mind. He had tiptoed past the only house with a candle still burning in the window, despite the fact that the occupant had seen the Force of Nature and just chose to ignore him. Truth be told, the hovel that he had taken residence in as his "home" away from home away from home would have sufficed, but he chose find somewhere even more secluded than what can only be describe as a shed with a cot in it that he had been "living" in.
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Well, I guess we never thought about it NOT working.
You are playing a game, and REAL people are the pieces. You're lucky you waited until now to tell me about this, because I would have never allowed it to happen! You realize who you are turning into, right?
Does this mean you are going to tell Catie?
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On the outskirts of town, though, he had found the perfect place or at least that of a building his skittish mind felt to be. An old wooden granary would have to do despite Hangtown's yearly hoard having been taken in and stashed there. Hardly any of the dirt floor could be seen and there was very little space for Justin to maneuver, but he found a little nook inside of a cranny to conduct his business, even if it meant setting the whole thing ablaze.
He severed the paper of the envelope from itself to reveal the contents that had been hidden away from him. An empty file folder was all that he took from within, or at least that's what it appeared to be until he flipped it open. A single piece of paper fell to the dirt and the Force of Nature dropped the envelope beside it as he bent over to pick it back up again. Holding his candle mere inches from the flammable vellum, he could see that all of the information on the page had been redacted except for one word somewhere in the middle, and the file name that had been hand scribbled and barely legible up towards the top of the sheet.
"Patient... Z? E? D? Zed?
"Rose?"
The handwriting had been faded, or perhaps had gotten wet and the ink bled as a result, but for some reason Justin was ignoring that for the other word which was not at the beginning of any sentence. Its capitalization could only mean one thing, at least to Justin, and that was the fact that Rose Ann Maria Bowd, one of the final two missing Southwind patients, was somehow more important than he initially suspected, and was now connected with another patient just now being introduced into the mix.
It was, while at the same time wasn't, hard to believe that Hangtown was intertwined into the ongoing saga of Doctor Damian Sorrow and the Southwind Gardens Six. But if Justin had been led astray from the right path in the past, he had certainly found his way back on that night, no matter how winding that road might be.
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Oh my God, Justin, would you listen to yourself? No, I'm not going to tell her, but that's only because doing so would put this whole messed up thing in more jeopardy than it already is!
Lindsay, I've always said that the only way to beat him at his own game was to actually play it, and I am doing just that! If that means I have to turn into that little bastard for a while and fuck with a few lives while I'm at it, then so be it! Sure, if it doesn't work, I may very well lose another friend I'll never get back, but right now, I can't think like that, and can only press on with the notion that it will go off without a hitch.
You are starting to scare me!
The last thing I want to do is put you or the kids in danger, that's why I'm telling you now. Besides, he volunteered for this!
Fine! But if I'm going to be a part of this, you need to tell me one thing, right now, and don't leave anything out! Who is Patient Zero?!
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