Welcome Guest [Log In] [Register]
Add Reply
I'm Dreaming...; Chapter 28 [Showdown 37 RP]
Topic Started: Mar 28 2010, 02:48 AM (35 Views)
Night
Member Avatar
sVo Legend
[ *  *  *  *  * ]
A cool burst of air brushes against my face.

I am running - more specifically I seem to be running vertically up a very steep section of the mountain top. Clearly ecstatic at the ease of my climb I laugh. Once again, my body floats forwards... upwards... out of my control...

... I'm dreaming.

Yes. Yes, I remember this. To my left I see my adversary, a man in black - his hair representing every color of the rainbow. He stares at me blankly, disbelief plastered on his face. Not one to lie down in defeat he leaps from the mountain and is immediately transformed into a raven once more. Upward he flies after me, much faster than I can run, even here.

But I must not be beaten - not now.

Desperately I lash out and with a feeling of great relief I feel myself connect with a powerful strike on my winged foe. Human again he falls from sight. I have no time to look back now though, the end is within my reach.

My steps become heavier and it seems that gravity has decided to bring to an end my brief reprieve from its rules. As if the world were turning vertically, my full weight returns to me and once more I am grasping at thin cracks and the smallest of ledges. But I am so close, I can feel it. Looking heavenward I catch sight of the reason I climb this seemingly impossible slope. Why I have fought to get to this point. And yet I know there is still one trial remaining. I remember them - the two silhouettes at the base of the... peak. Two men locked in combat working towards this same glowing goal which I too chase as if my life depended on it. I am certain that only one remains, and that they are not far behind - if not waiting up ahead.

Gritting my teeth I climb as quickly as I can, although it is a hard climb and the last few feet seem to stretch out ahead. In what could be seconds or possibly days I finally grab hold of a solid rock and pull myself, gasping, onto a flat. Opening my eyes I can see that another climb awaits me - I should have expected it, still, I am relieved to have reached this far. But my rest is short lived.

He's here.

Panting, a man in a black fedora and black trench coat pulls himself up onto the flat. Immediately leaping to his feet he stares at me. I return his gaze and simultaneously we look towards the highest peak - now actually visible.

A glowing beacon among the clouds.

The sVo World Heavyweight Championship.

Once more the man in the fedora and I glare at each other, each sizing the other up. Both of us knowing what is about to follow - or at least assuming we do. As one we turn and begin to bolt at the last remaining crag, only to be stopped in our tracks as two limousines pull up out of nowhere. From each limo emerge men in dark suits and sunglasses.

"Congratulations gentlemen," one of them remarks. Or all of them. It's hard to tell with these guys. "If you'll come with us please."

We are hurriedly ushered into the waiting cars. Before I can protest, the doors have closed and my seat belt flies into place and fastens - we are away. I look behind me at the rapidly diminishing glow.

"It's alright, you'll be back here soon."

I look around the car for the speaker - all three of the suited men wear the same blank expression and all still wear their sunglasses despite the near pitch black conditions in the back of the limousine. It occurs to me only now that we were just on the peak of a mountain when we 'hitched a ride', albeit involuntarily. Now squinting to look out the window I see that we are roaring down the mountain at a terrifying speed. My stomach feels like it falls last - ahead of us I make out a huge blue mass... the ocean!

I try to voice my protest - to ask the car to stop... if it even could stop - but no sound comes out. I look around the car in horror. The eerie calm of the suits is almost more unnerving. I can do nothing but watch helplessly as the ocean rushes up and consumes us. Amazingly, the transition is smooth and somehow the car continues to propel ahead despite being on the ocean floor.

Peering through the darkened window I notice that the ocean is lifeless. No fish, no coral, no wrecks - nothing. An endless blue lies ahead of us in all directions. Finally my voice returns.

"Where are we going?" I stammer.

"We're here."

The reply is short and simple - and as it comes the car breaks apart and within seconds I am flailing in the water. I panic as my lungs start to ache from holding in that last gasp of air I managed to snatch as the car broke apart. Able to take no more, I prepare for the inevitable and breathe... and again...

and again...?

Looking around in amazement of my survival and apparent ability to breathe underwater I am not sure whether or not to be surprised that the dark-suited men are comfortably doing the same.

They indicate to follow them and seeing no other alternative, I do. Following them into the endless blue I am taken by surprise as we suddenly find ourselves in the middle of what appears to be a huge casino gaming floor. A quick look into the distance lets me know where we are. Still deep underwater, we appear to be in some kind of pressurized bubble. Around me, a mass of people go about their business as normal. Bright flashing lights and quick glimpses of cheerful music blind my senses.

I push onwards and find myself face to face with a giant roulette wheel. It is already spinning - a white ball bouncing endlessly along it. The people around the table seem more like mannequins. They stare at the wheel, transfixed. The dealer is also motionless, gesturing enthusiastically to the spinning wheel on the table in front of him. The speed of the spin is so consistent it is hard to gauge exactly how long it has been going.

But a strange thing happens - the more I stare at it the slower it spins until finally it stops, the ball coming to rest on a black square.

"Lucky thirteen!"

Although his lips do not move I can tell it is the dealer's voice. The whole room seems to darken - all sound becomes muffled and it is hard to make out what anyone is saying. Unsure of whether this new distortion is due to my diminishing senses or are simply changes to my current environment I can not help but notice as a dark figure emerges from somewhere behind the dealer.

I recognize my fate and stand to meet the new challenge. In a blur of motion I engage my attacker. The two of us exchange blows and I am thrown. On the floor of the undersea casino I inspect my adversary.

Looking at him closely I realize that his eyes are blacked out; the rest of his features are... undefinable. A blur with black voids for eyes. I stare at the blackness peering back at me and as I do it spreads. Firstly over his face - then his body - the roulette table - the players - the casino - the ocean. Suddenly I find myself falling through nothing.

Blackness.

Surrounding me.

The fall is slow and gradual but the feeling remains in my stomach throughout. That same feeling I'd had in the car as we plummeted towards the ocean. Just as I wonder how long I will fall, my answer comes as I land with a thud. Dusting myself off, I stand, once again observing my surroundings - and am overjoyed to find myself back on top of the mountaintop.





.........










.....













...







... what?

Goodfellas Casino?

It's still dark out - of course. Although on checking the bedside clock beside me, I am relatively pleased to see it reads "4:27 am". Not a huge improvement from my usual 3 am rise but still, it is almost a relief just to break the pattern.

These early morning interruptions to my sleeping patterns had been annoying, but compared to two years of barely any sleep at all they had been a welcome improvement. Complain as I might, I can not help but feel that things are getting better. For two years I have been obsessed with the sVo World Championship and in just over a week I will have one more chance to capture it. In the meantime however, a slight detour stands in front of me, in the form of Showdown 37 - Roulette Night.

A sudden compulsion washes over me and I rise from the bed, pulling on a pair of jeans, black boots and a black hoodie - I pull the hood over my face... it is anonymity I crave at the moment, my mask is not exactly inconspicuous so on this occasion, and as I very seldom do, I leave it behind me this time. This time it rests, still sleeping on the bedside table.

Stepping from my room into the lounge area of my suite at the casino, I hear a loud snoring. Master Kimura lies unconscious on the sofa. My guess is he woke at 3 to sit with me for a while when I woke up - of course I'd been appreciative of his efforts to calm me, but on this occasion, I feel that I should leave him to sleep and slip silently from the suite, almost immediately into an elevator and down to the casino floor.

The sight awaiting me is nothing uncommon to anyone familiar with 'sin city'. Blinding, gaudy lights and a chorus of electronic celebratory music assaults me the second I step from the elevator. The throng of people still milling about drinking and gaming would certainly be enough to make you forget the early hour of the morning. Here in Vegas, 4:30 am on a Tuesday might as well be midnight on a Friday night. Not sure what I am looking for, I begin my walk through the crowd. Catching only brief glimpses of the characters and stories captured within the casino, I continue forward, sure that what I'm looking for lies ahead.

And then I see it.

Straight from my dream, the roulette table.

The dealer, much more animated and charismatic than in my dream entices the enthusiastic crowd around the table. I can't help but notice the decals around the table and wheel. The roulette wheel presently features the faces of current roster members of the sVo - this IS Goodfellas Casino afterall.


DEALER: Number 8's a winner!

I can't help but think of some of the talented names involved this week on Showdown - it's hard to prepare for a night such as this - my opponent could be any of these men.

Number eight... let's see... Johnny All Star.

He's been here longer than I have. He's been in main events - a former International Champion... hell, he might be International Champion again next week. He'd been unlucky to be eliminated from the Alex Ross Tournament early, I know he'd be a tough guy to face.


DEALER: Red 19!

A small group of people on the right side of the table let out a cheer as a small fortune in chips are slid over to them.

Nineteen. Paradine. He hadn't had the best run since returning to sVo - seems he's been haunted by some personal demons. But I know what he's capable of. A former Hostility champion. An sVo veteran. Another guy with a lot to prove and another tough potential opponent.


DEALER: Red 14!

Raven. My opponent last week. We've endured a war and I was fortunate enough to prevail, last time. Now, like all his stable mates he was looking to redeem himself and to continue his climb to the top. And, like with any strong alliance you never know if you will only be facing the one opponent or the entire group.

DEALER: Zero!

Zero. I think of the unknown elements. The mysterious and dangerous Weapon X. Chris Bond, BBD, Ranken, Killer White - all new signings all big threats. And with sVo freshly returning you can't count out other surprise returns and entrants on the night. The unknown factors could be the most dangerous element on Sunday night...

... The Company itself.


DEALER: Red 18!

And there he is. Tobias Devereux.

My opponent at Resurrection. The man I will face for the sVo World Championship. So far undefeated in his time in the sVo. I find myself wondering if fate would bring us face to face a week early. The man has talent, I must admit. He's charismatic, the fans love him and he's beaten everyone thrown in front of him so far.

Lets not forget, he also beat Weapon X in his debut match.

Suddenly I feel compelled - I walk swiftly towards the table and place a fifty dollar note on the table just as the dealer makes his spin.


DEALER: No more bets.

I watch eagerly as the little white ball dances along the wheel. I'm not usually a betting man, but when you have a feeling as certain as this - you can't resist it.

DEALER: Lucky 13!

I can't help but grin as a small fortune in chips are pushed my way.

NIGHT: Lucky 13.

Posted Image
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
1 user reading this topic (1 Guest and 0 Anonymous)
ZetaBoards - Free Forum Hosting
Fully Featured & Customizable Free Forums
Learn More · Sign-up Now
« Previous Topic · sVo Showdown RP Archive · Next Topic »
Add Reply

threesixty by tiptopolive of the Zetaboards Theme Zone