Post by The Brothers Blackwater on Dec 4, 2018 23:58:31 GMT -8
"I doubt I'll ever get the image of my son mocking me, out of my head."
I say this to my father as I leave Arkin's nursery. The little guy tuckered himself out, venting his frustrations to my father, then when I was finally able to understand him as well, it was pretty much game over. In truth, I never thought I'd find myself being mocked by my son during his infancy, then again nothing has ever been average or ordinary about my life, so why would this be any different? Still, I didn't think I'd be mocked by Arkin until he was a teenager. Oh well, maybe now that he got that out of his system and I put him down for a nap, things will settle down. There won't be anymore poop protests. That's right. The bombardment of poop that he's been unleashing, was his retaliation. For the whole ignoring and renaming him, fiasco. I found that out right before he started getting sleepy and needed a nap. Luckily he agreed to the terms of cease fire agreement. Wow. If I mentioned this... any of this, to anyone, that didn't already understand the special circumstances about my family, I would be committed so fast, it's not even funny.
"So this thing that you did, is it permanent?"
Joining Azrael in the kitchen, I walk over to my coffeemaker and refill my cup, that sat waiting on the counter, like a vigilant little soldier. I really needed it after everything that happened. A cigarette would even be better but I'm keeping the apartment smoke free, so the coffee will have to do. Without a cigarette though, it just seems... wrong.
"No, it should wear off in twenty four hours. If you weren't born with the gift, I can replicate it, pass it on, so to speak but I can't give it to you indefinitely. Although, I might have something in my lab, if you're interested in prolonging the communication process."
"After what I've already experienced, I think I'll wait till he can catch up to talking to me, without any extra added assistance."
Laughing, I take a sip of coffee as I slide onto a stool near the counter; across from me, my father slightly chuckles and shakes his head.
"He should be all good, now that he finally got to express himself."
"Yeah, it's still weird for me. I want to be cool with understanding him and knowing what he's really saying but after actually experiencing it, I'd be lying if I didn't say that I was looking forward to getting back to the bliss of ignorance. Besides, with everything that's already so 'unique' about my life, a little normal seems nice."
"He's half alien, half water elemental. Normal isn't an option. It's also overrated in my own personal opinion."
"Yeah well, your opinion is a tad biased."
"Fair enough."
My father took this moment, to remove his fedora, reach inside and I mean, really inside cause he stuck his hand into that hat and began rummaging around. Sort of like how someone might stick their hand into a big box full of stuff and whatever they wanted was at the bottom of the box, so they needed to rifle around inside before they located what they were looking for, except this was a hat, not a box. He did this, till half his arm had disappeared. No joke. He was in that hat up to his elbow. Way beyond the constraints and physical properties of what reaching inside a normal fedora would allow. He then pulled out his hand and removed a teddy bear.
Resting the bear on the counter, he returned his fedora to its place atop his head, making sure to tilt it slightly to the left, a preferred adjustment that I've taken note to. He had a few of those.
"I forgot to grab that when I was leaving my tower. It's for Arkin obviously. I made it myself."
"You made a stuffed bear."
Rolling his eyes, Azrael gave a chuckle.
"It's not just a bear. It's a defense mechanism. It senses danger and will go out of its way to protect Arkin, should the need for that ever arise. I made one just like it for Lila when she was a baby, she still has it to this day."
"What exactly does it do to protect?"
"It's trained in every known fighting style and can throw a grown man several feet across the room. It can also generate a force field that can withstand a thousand pounds of pressure."
"Force fields are my thing though."
"I know but what if you're not around, then what?"
"Why am I not around?"
"It's only a precaution, not a replacement. Relax. I know you can take care of your son. The bear is simply an added safety net. That's all."
"I guess that's fine. You tested it right? It's safe? It won't malfunction and accidentally think Arkin is the thing it has to attack?"
"Your confidence in my handy work is flattering. No. It won't attack Arkin. The bear is safe. Trust me. This isn't my first or last invention. I happen to know a thing... or a million, about creating inventions."
"I didn't mean it like that... I'm just..."
"A new father. Overprotective. I get it. I stabbed a sword through my husband, protecting Lila while she was still in her mother's womb."
"That comment raises so many questions."
"I'm technically still married to a man named Orion, that lives on Ozuul."
"Technically?"
"We're legally married but I don't see him. Ever. And I don't plan on that changing. Ever."
"Sour subject. Gotcha."
"No, it's not like that. Complicated would be a better word for it."
"Noted."
That's when I decided that changing the subject would be the best course of action.
"I landed my first client."
"Nice subject change."
"Thanks, I thought so too, plus this gives me a chance to brag because this client, he's going to really change things as far as my career goes."
"Impressive. Who is he?"
"Maxwell Maximus."
As I took a swallow of coffee, I noticed a dramatic change in my father's mannerisms. It was like someone dumped a bucket of ice water over the top of his head. Shifting in his chair, he bit his lip and seemed to be really trying, to find the appropriate words to say. He couldn't even look at me for a second. It was like I told him the worst thing in the world. I didn't understand. Yet before I could say anything, my father spoke.
"Maxwell Maximus."
He seemed to struggle to just get the name out. Like saying it sickened him to his very core. Gradually, he appeared to be able to regain his composure though, with a deep breath, he continued.
"You're working for Maxwell Maximus?"
Still baffled, I didn't know what to do except answer his question. If I had known Maxwell was an issue for Azrael, I would have never brought him up. Unfortunately, it was too late for that now, so all I could do was answer.
"Yeah. Only as his accountant and financial consultant though. He won't even be my sole client, so it's not like I'll be setting up shop in his building. I'll probably barely see him, since I planned on doing most of my work from my office here, at home. When we do talk, we'll be primarily keeping in touch through emails. Nothing more than that."
"Give it time."
"What does that mean?"
"It means I know Maxwell, very well. He's like a plague. He infects and then spreads, till he's completely overtaken you. Until you're doing things that you would have never even dreamed that you would do. He will manipulate and control you, sink his claws into every part of your existence and the worst part about it is that you won't even realize that's even happening, till it's too late. That man is a vile, putrid reptile. A snake. Not to be trusted and..."
"And what?"
"And I should have incinerated him when I had the chance."
"Whoa! What? You should have incinerated him when you had the chance?"
"The last time I seen Maxwell, I was helping Griffin MacAlister, sever ties with him. Instead of killing him when I had the chance, like I should have, I let him go and now, he's roped you into his little fucking underground world of terror. He might even be doing it to get at me, which definitely means, he has awful things in mind for you. Unspeakable, wretched, incomprehensible ideas, that only he could dream up, in that twisted fucking brain of his. FUCK!"
Out of nowhere, the oven door blew off its hinges and the fridge did a somersault across the kitchen, slamming straight into the stove, where the two crunched together like they were put inside a trash compactor. Oh and every single glass item exploded. Yes. That includes my cup of coffee and the coffee pot. It was only when I smelt the smoke, that I realized I needed to do something. I couldn't see the source of the fire but in my mind that was a good thing.
"Dad. Calm down. Please. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you."
A visible tremor went through Azrael's body and when I caught a glimpse of his eyes, there was an inferno that burned within them. I watched him as he shut his eyes and took a deep breath. Within seconds everything returned to normal. Even my cup of coffee. Although, I was seriously way more concerned with my father, than I was with anything else. I had never seen this side of him before. It was terrifying. Keeping his eyes shut, he spoke in a low tone.
"I'm sorry, Donovan. I didn't mean for that to happen."
He opened his eyes and directed his attention fully towards me. Gone was the inferno, now there was only tremendous sorrow. And regret.
"Please forgive me."
"Absolutely. Don't even worry about it. I'm actually more concerned about you. Are you okay?"
Once again something out of nowhere occurred. Azreal hugged me. He just stood up and threw his arms around me. Since I've come to know my father, this was the first actual real hug that I received from him. He held me close, like someone does when they deeply fear losing another and whispered.
"You have to trust me. Maxwell is pure evil. Break ties with him as soon as you can. For you and your family's safety."
With that, he was gone. Just like that, Azrael vanished into thin air. Meanwhile, I was left feeling shell shocked and confused. What the fuck happened?
"Oh wow. Mastermind's last promo... it was sure something alright."
"Welp... I guess I'm just going to need to rip the bandaid off then and address some things."
"First off, I didn't go apeshit. I voiced my concerns. Because the man was saying that he heard voices. I even quoted him. He said there was a little whisper going around. To me that sounded like schizophrenia. Which I also stated already. That's troublesome but by no means did it make me lose my cool. His misinterpretation of my reaction is baffling to say the least but as I mentioned previously, schizophrenia sufferers can't properly understand what's being said. So maybe I did look like I was freaking out. Maybe I transformed into a giant, bubble shooting, bumblebee. Or I could have turned into Godzilla and then, when I was finished losing my shit, I went off to fight Mothra. Who knows? It's whatever his broken brain perceived. One thing is for sure, that wasn't me going apeshit cause I've gone apeshit before, and that was way worse than whatever I did on camera. Like by a trillion percent."
"Then he goes on to accuse me of blaming Gator for being the 'little birdie' for some reason. I never blamed Gator for anything. At all. I mentioned that Gator and I were supposed to get together to shoot dueling promos and I used the man as a point of reference for when I brought Mastermind up but that's it. I was showing Mastermind that was when I brought him up, in order for him to see, that I didn't speak about him to anyone after that. That's also why I referenced speaking directly to him as well. Where he got that I was blaming Gator for being a 'little birdie' I have no idea. I mentioned him being misinformed by someone, but there was no one identified as the source. Nothing in my promo is even close to sounding like that. What I did strongly state was that I thought he was nuts. I'm sorry, when someone says they hear whispers, that just sounds crazy to me. There is no way anyone could hear my words and think I was convinced of anything else."
"Also while Mastermind recorded this hot mess, he was slurring and messing his words up like crazy. So he must have been drunk. That explains why he said I couldn't record another promo. I don't know why he would say that. I know the company sets a limit on the number of recordings that we can do, I believe it has something to do with the production budgets. I keep track of that cause if I go over that limit, I have to shell out cash to Vinnie Lane from my own pocket, in order to air the material. That's just plain unnecessary. Who needs to air that much footage? I don't but at the same time, I do pay mind to the limits and restrictions. So believe me when I say, I am well within the realm of that. I think the time stamps on the recordings should prove that though."
"Anyway, it's obvious that Mastermind is circling the drain, so to speak. Coming undone. All of his promotional videos are evidence to that but none greater than his last promo. He's says that he's ready for our match but who knows what type of condition he'll be in when that takes place. If he'll even be able to walk to the ring or actually wrestle. That's how bad of a state he was in from what I last saw anyway. I literally don't know what to expect. In a way, I suppose that makes it more interesting."
"One thing that is for sure, he really believes that he got into my head and that I'm going to lose the title. Yeah, that's not going to happen. Not tomorrow. Not my next fight. Or the next. So on and so on. I said it before. I'm in this for the long fucking haul. This is my title. I'm going to wield it until I get that pay off. That sweet briefcase and my ticket to the Universal Champ. You hear that Engy? Robert? You guys haven't tangled yet, so the outcome is still uncertain on which of you will wield the title but as far as I'm concerned, it doesn't matter who wins, I'll be ready for whoever wears that belt, when my time comes to take it. Oh that's right. I said take it. There's no doubt. I know my true calling is to rise to the top. Hear my voice, unwavering and certain. I know that title belongs to me. Whoever has it now, they're simply keeping it warm for me. I have to admit though, the Uni title is looking awfully dull. That's okay, I know exactly what will shine it up, nice and pretty like. Make it glisten. Sort of like my X-Treme title does, now that it's finally around the waist of a true champion. Hint. Hint."
"Actions speak louder than words and tomorrow night, I am going to dish out one heck of a show stopper. Then I'm going to shoot Mastermind in the knee!"
"See ya tomorrow, Mastermind."
I say this to my father as I leave Arkin's nursery. The little guy tuckered himself out, venting his frustrations to my father, then when I was finally able to understand him as well, it was pretty much game over. In truth, I never thought I'd find myself being mocked by my son during his infancy, then again nothing has ever been average or ordinary about my life, so why would this be any different? Still, I didn't think I'd be mocked by Arkin until he was a teenager. Oh well, maybe now that he got that out of his system and I put him down for a nap, things will settle down. There won't be anymore poop protests. That's right. The bombardment of poop that he's been unleashing, was his retaliation. For the whole ignoring and renaming him, fiasco. I found that out right before he started getting sleepy and needed a nap. Luckily he agreed to the terms of cease fire agreement. Wow. If I mentioned this... any of this, to anyone, that didn't already understand the special circumstances about my family, I would be committed so fast, it's not even funny.
"So this thing that you did, is it permanent?"
Joining Azrael in the kitchen, I walk over to my coffeemaker and refill my cup, that sat waiting on the counter, like a vigilant little soldier. I really needed it after everything that happened. A cigarette would even be better but I'm keeping the apartment smoke free, so the coffee will have to do. Without a cigarette though, it just seems... wrong.
"No, it should wear off in twenty four hours. If you weren't born with the gift, I can replicate it, pass it on, so to speak but I can't give it to you indefinitely. Although, I might have something in my lab, if you're interested in prolonging the communication process."
"After what I've already experienced, I think I'll wait till he can catch up to talking to me, without any extra added assistance."
Laughing, I take a sip of coffee as I slide onto a stool near the counter; across from me, my father slightly chuckles and shakes his head.
"He should be all good, now that he finally got to express himself."
"Yeah, it's still weird for me. I want to be cool with understanding him and knowing what he's really saying but after actually experiencing it, I'd be lying if I didn't say that I was looking forward to getting back to the bliss of ignorance. Besides, with everything that's already so 'unique' about my life, a little normal seems nice."
"He's half alien, half water elemental. Normal isn't an option. It's also overrated in my own personal opinion."
"Yeah well, your opinion is a tad biased."
"Fair enough."
My father took this moment, to remove his fedora, reach inside and I mean, really inside cause he stuck his hand into that hat and began rummaging around. Sort of like how someone might stick their hand into a big box full of stuff and whatever they wanted was at the bottom of the box, so they needed to rifle around inside before they located what they were looking for, except this was a hat, not a box. He did this, till half his arm had disappeared. No joke. He was in that hat up to his elbow. Way beyond the constraints and physical properties of what reaching inside a normal fedora would allow. He then pulled out his hand and removed a teddy bear.
Resting the bear on the counter, he returned his fedora to its place atop his head, making sure to tilt it slightly to the left, a preferred adjustment that I've taken note to. He had a few of those.
"I forgot to grab that when I was leaving my tower. It's for Arkin obviously. I made it myself."
"You made a stuffed bear."
Rolling his eyes, Azrael gave a chuckle.
"It's not just a bear. It's a defense mechanism. It senses danger and will go out of its way to protect Arkin, should the need for that ever arise. I made one just like it for Lila when she was a baby, she still has it to this day."
"What exactly does it do to protect?"
"It's trained in every known fighting style and can throw a grown man several feet across the room. It can also generate a force field that can withstand a thousand pounds of pressure."
"Force fields are my thing though."
"I know but what if you're not around, then what?"
"Why am I not around?"
"It's only a precaution, not a replacement. Relax. I know you can take care of your son. The bear is simply an added safety net. That's all."
"I guess that's fine. You tested it right? It's safe? It won't malfunction and accidentally think Arkin is the thing it has to attack?"
"Your confidence in my handy work is flattering. No. It won't attack Arkin. The bear is safe. Trust me. This isn't my first or last invention. I happen to know a thing... or a million, about creating inventions."
"I didn't mean it like that... I'm just..."
"A new father. Overprotective. I get it. I stabbed a sword through my husband, protecting Lila while she was still in her mother's womb."
"That comment raises so many questions."
"I'm technically still married to a man named Orion, that lives on Ozuul."
"Technically?"
"We're legally married but I don't see him. Ever. And I don't plan on that changing. Ever."
"Sour subject. Gotcha."
"No, it's not like that. Complicated would be a better word for it."
"Noted."
That's when I decided that changing the subject would be the best course of action.
"I landed my first client."
"Nice subject change."
"Thanks, I thought so too, plus this gives me a chance to brag because this client, he's going to really change things as far as my career goes."
"Impressive. Who is he?"
"Maxwell Maximus."
As I took a swallow of coffee, I noticed a dramatic change in my father's mannerisms. It was like someone dumped a bucket of ice water over the top of his head. Shifting in his chair, he bit his lip and seemed to be really trying, to find the appropriate words to say. He couldn't even look at me for a second. It was like I told him the worst thing in the world. I didn't understand. Yet before I could say anything, my father spoke.
"Maxwell Maximus."
He seemed to struggle to just get the name out. Like saying it sickened him to his very core. Gradually, he appeared to be able to regain his composure though, with a deep breath, he continued.
"You're working for Maxwell Maximus?"
Still baffled, I didn't know what to do except answer his question. If I had known Maxwell was an issue for Azrael, I would have never brought him up. Unfortunately, it was too late for that now, so all I could do was answer.
"Yeah. Only as his accountant and financial consultant though. He won't even be my sole client, so it's not like I'll be setting up shop in his building. I'll probably barely see him, since I planned on doing most of my work from my office here, at home. When we do talk, we'll be primarily keeping in touch through emails. Nothing more than that."
"Give it time."
"What does that mean?"
"It means I know Maxwell, very well. He's like a plague. He infects and then spreads, till he's completely overtaken you. Until you're doing things that you would have never even dreamed that you would do. He will manipulate and control you, sink his claws into every part of your existence and the worst part about it is that you won't even realize that's even happening, till it's too late. That man is a vile, putrid reptile. A snake. Not to be trusted and..."
"And what?"
"And I should have incinerated him when I had the chance."
"Whoa! What? You should have incinerated him when you had the chance?"
"The last time I seen Maxwell, I was helping Griffin MacAlister, sever ties with him. Instead of killing him when I had the chance, like I should have, I let him go and now, he's roped you into his little fucking underground world of terror. He might even be doing it to get at me, which definitely means, he has awful things in mind for you. Unspeakable, wretched, incomprehensible ideas, that only he could dream up, in that twisted fucking brain of his. FUCK!"
Out of nowhere, the oven door blew off its hinges and the fridge did a somersault across the kitchen, slamming straight into the stove, where the two crunched together like they were put inside a trash compactor. Oh and every single glass item exploded. Yes. That includes my cup of coffee and the coffee pot. It was only when I smelt the smoke, that I realized I needed to do something. I couldn't see the source of the fire but in my mind that was a good thing.
"Dad. Calm down. Please. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you."
A visible tremor went through Azrael's body and when I caught a glimpse of his eyes, there was an inferno that burned within them. I watched him as he shut his eyes and took a deep breath. Within seconds everything returned to normal. Even my cup of coffee. Although, I was seriously way more concerned with my father, than I was with anything else. I had never seen this side of him before. It was terrifying. Keeping his eyes shut, he spoke in a low tone.
"I'm sorry, Donovan. I didn't mean for that to happen."
He opened his eyes and directed his attention fully towards me. Gone was the inferno, now there was only tremendous sorrow. And regret.
"Please forgive me."
"Absolutely. Don't even worry about it. I'm actually more concerned about you. Are you okay?"
Once again something out of nowhere occurred. Azreal hugged me. He just stood up and threw his arms around me. Since I've come to know my father, this was the first actual real hug that I received from him. He held me close, like someone does when they deeply fear losing another and whispered.
"You have to trust me. Maxwell is pure evil. Break ties with him as soon as you can. For you and your family's safety."
With that, he was gone. Just like that, Azrael vanished into thin air. Meanwhile, I was left feeling shell shocked and confused. What the fuck happened?
"Oh wow. Mastermind's last promo... it was sure something alright."
"Welp... I guess I'm just going to need to rip the bandaid off then and address some things."
"First off, I didn't go apeshit. I voiced my concerns. Because the man was saying that he heard voices. I even quoted him. He said there was a little whisper going around. To me that sounded like schizophrenia. Which I also stated already. That's troublesome but by no means did it make me lose my cool. His misinterpretation of my reaction is baffling to say the least but as I mentioned previously, schizophrenia sufferers can't properly understand what's being said. So maybe I did look like I was freaking out. Maybe I transformed into a giant, bubble shooting, bumblebee. Or I could have turned into Godzilla and then, when I was finished losing my shit, I went off to fight Mothra. Who knows? It's whatever his broken brain perceived. One thing is for sure, that wasn't me going apeshit cause I've gone apeshit before, and that was way worse than whatever I did on camera. Like by a trillion percent."
"Then he goes on to accuse me of blaming Gator for being the 'little birdie' for some reason. I never blamed Gator for anything. At all. I mentioned that Gator and I were supposed to get together to shoot dueling promos and I used the man as a point of reference for when I brought Mastermind up but that's it. I was showing Mastermind that was when I brought him up, in order for him to see, that I didn't speak about him to anyone after that. That's also why I referenced speaking directly to him as well. Where he got that I was blaming Gator for being a 'little birdie' I have no idea. I mentioned him being misinformed by someone, but there was no one identified as the source. Nothing in my promo is even close to sounding like that. What I did strongly state was that I thought he was nuts. I'm sorry, when someone says they hear whispers, that just sounds crazy to me. There is no way anyone could hear my words and think I was convinced of anything else."
"Also while Mastermind recorded this hot mess, he was slurring and messing his words up like crazy. So he must have been drunk. That explains why he said I couldn't record another promo. I don't know why he would say that. I know the company sets a limit on the number of recordings that we can do, I believe it has something to do with the production budgets. I keep track of that cause if I go over that limit, I have to shell out cash to Vinnie Lane from my own pocket, in order to air the material. That's just plain unnecessary. Who needs to air that much footage? I don't but at the same time, I do pay mind to the limits and restrictions. So believe me when I say, I am well within the realm of that. I think the time stamps on the recordings should prove that though."
"Anyway, it's obvious that Mastermind is circling the drain, so to speak. Coming undone. All of his promotional videos are evidence to that but none greater than his last promo. He's says that he's ready for our match but who knows what type of condition he'll be in when that takes place. If he'll even be able to walk to the ring or actually wrestle. That's how bad of a state he was in from what I last saw anyway. I literally don't know what to expect. In a way, I suppose that makes it more interesting."
"One thing that is for sure, he really believes that he got into my head and that I'm going to lose the title. Yeah, that's not going to happen. Not tomorrow. Not my next fight. Or the next. So on and so on. I said it before. I'm in this for the long fucking haul. This is my title. I'm going to wield it until I get that pay off. That sweet briefcase and my ticket to the Universal Champ. You hear that Engy? Robert? You guys haven't tangled yet, so the outcome is still uncertain on which of you will wield the title but as far as I'm concerned, it doesn't matter who wins, I'll be ready for whoever wears that belt, when my time comes to take it. Oh that's right. I said take it. There's no doubt. I know my true calling is to rise to the top. Hear my voice, unwavering and certain. I know that title belongs to me. Whoever has it now, they're simply keeping it warm for me. I have to admit though, the Uni title is looking awfully dull. That's okay, I know exactly what will shine it up, nice and pretty like. Make it glisten. Sort of like my X-Treme title does, now that it's finally around the waist of a true champion. Hint. Hint."
"Actions speak louder than words and tomorrow night, I am going to dish out one heck of a show stopper. Then I'm going to shoot Mastermind in the knee!"
"See ya tomorrow, Mastermind."