The Burdens We Bear -- UWS RP Board

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Date Posted: 12:37:05 06/09/03 Mon
Author: "The Sentinel" Gabriel Blade
Subject: The Burdens We Bear

(Scene opens with a shot of flickering flame. It is not the violent, unchecked flame that can maim and kill. It is not the fire of destruction and pain that men like Hellfire revel in. It is a fire of warmth and life. It is the kind of fire that for thousands upon thousands of years has kept man alive. It is a campfire. The shut pulls back showing the modest fire walled in on all sides by stacked stones to keep it from spreading out of control, and the pile of dry branches, tree limbs, and logs gathered near but not too near so that the fire may burn well into the night. The shot moves beyond the fire to explore our surroundings. The ground is old and rocky with patches of grass, it is the ground found at the summit of a small mountain. Moving further from the fire we come to the edge of our land, and look forth all of creation. The sky, dotted with clouds to the left and distant right, is perfectly clear above us. The moon and the stars that have fascinated our ancestors since time immemorial shine brightly down upon us, along with the fire providing enough illumination to light our way. To the left we see a handful of other mountains protruding through a patch of fog or low clouds. The great peaks of stone climbing forth from the strange gray sea that slowly swings and flows with a life of its own is sight that man will not find on the safer grounds below. In front of us and stretching well to our right is a large forest, and beyond that a stretch of lake or ocean. The trees, so vast and grand when seen up close seem small and tiny from our vantage point. The forest, often thought of as simply a connection of individual living things, is seen for what it truly is, one great and connected being that has grown and lived for as long as man can remember. A small boat, probably a fishing vessel, though barely more than a single light to us moves slowly across the waters. Visible beyond that is more land, and a handful of houses shining lights up at us provides the scene of a small village at our feet. Taking a moment to soak it all in it is truly a sight to behold, a sight to fill man with joy and awe at the world in which he lives and to make him truly know he is alive. But the man who climbed up this mountain and built our fire is not finding any comfort in it.)

(The shot swings around once again facing the fire, and this time seeing what is behind it. Climbing gear and a sleeping bag sit behind and to the right. Sitting directly in front of us and beyond the fire, staring into it without really seeing, is "the Sentinel" Gabriel Blade. The light from the fire dances across his face casting strange and ever changing shadows. It is almost as if the fire is alive and at play, jaunting across his features, creating out of shadow play things and stories to captivate it as it burns. But Gabriel Blade is oblivious to any play around him as he sits, ostensibly tending the fire, his eyes moving back and forth in thought, his mind a million miles away. He came here for a break from his world, for the peace and serenity that places like this normally bring. But his mind is too trouble to allow him to let go and experience the mountain as it should be experienced.)

(Recent matters weigh heavily on his mind, and make him question more than just his recent actions. Eric Manson has returned, has potentially crippled Blade's tag team partner, and has aligned himself with the monsters of Sin and his Champions. Now he is set to battle these demons with who by his side but Lee Todd, Tumbler, and Curtis Slamm. The man who has proven to be his greatest enemy in the past in the UWS, his brother and partner in crime, and a man whose true purpose is still cloaked in shadows, but whose past paints a very unflattering picture. To add further complication to the matter, the LWA title, the title that means so much to so many, the title that he has dreamed of for so long, is on the line in the match. And with uncertain allies, monstrous enemies, and so much on the line, he finds himself questioning himself more than he ever has before.)

(Maybe he isn't the hero he strives so hard to be, maybe he is not a protector and bringer of light. Maybe instead he brings only pain and suffering. Seeing the horrors that poor innocent girl has had to endure at the hands of the monster Sin because of what he had done has really rattled him, and forced him to look back and see the pain he has been causing for so long as he has hurt the innocent and the ones he loves.)

(He thinks back to the beginning of it all, to his obsessive following of the LWA when the original Sentinel was slated to return and his subsequent head first jump into the world of professional wrestling. He sees the worry and concern on the faces of his best friends, LWA superfans Dave Deigan and Mick MacFee as they tried to support him in the crazy path he took. He sees the pain they endured and the grief they faced at the hands of parents, employers, and professors because of bad grades, missed work, and missed tests all because they had to drop everything and come to his aid when the world was crushing him down. They did so much for him, he could never be where he is today without their help, and look what it cost them.)

(He sees his parents and sees all the suffering his foolhardy choices have brought upon them. He sees his mother mourning as her family is slowly torn apart, and weeping as she watches her son's body destroyed by any number of viscous monsters. He sees his father... He sees the disbelief in his father's eyes that his son would make such a stupid decision, the anger that he won't obey and insists on throwing his life away, the viscous fights when he's come home to visit, the distance growing ever more between them, the secret sorrow and pain his father feels knowing that he is losing a son but not being able to do anything about it. He sees the strain all of this has put on the rest of his family, his grandparents, his sister. He sees his little baby niece crying hysterically at family gatherings because the tension couldn't be held in and another argument erupted between father and son. So much pain, and he's to blame.)

(He sees his partner and friend, "the Demolition Man" Michael Burke, almost killed at the hands of Sin as Sin sought to hurt him, then beaten and taken out of commission for who knows how long by Eric Manson in his quest for revenge and the OWF title.)

(Then he sees the truly innocent victims. The people chosen by Sin to serve as examples for him, to show him what Sin needed him to see. He sees the girl, the latest in a long line of victims, whose body will heal but whose mind may be scarred forever. Victim after victim after victim after victim, and all because of him. Their suffering rests on his shoulders. It is a heavy, crushing burden. It is a burden he doesn't know if he can bear for much longer.)

(He's tried so hard to do what's right, to fight the good fight, to be a Sentinel, a protector of the innocent, a defender of Justice and a punisher of evil. But is he really anything more than a monster himself? Is he a Champion of Good, or a self centered madmen, who may do some small good in fulfilling his own desires, but also turns a blind eye to the sea of sorrow he has caused? He can't accept it, but he can't allow the innocent to suffer because of him any longer. They must be protected, no matter the cost.)

(And maybe that's the answer. They must be protected, no matter the cost. If he truly believes that, and he truly fights to see it, maybe he is a hero after all. Maybe the pain of his friends is endured willingly to help in the fight, the suffering of his family the result of a father who cannot see his son's destiny. Maybe Burke would have been a target anyway as another Warrior in the endless battle, maybe Sin would have needed examples to show others even if he had never set foot inside a wrestling ring.)

(But the part of him that can see that possibility and accept it is not stronger than the part of him that feels guilt and horror over all the evil that has come to pass, and that feels that he is responsible. The innocent must be protected at all costs, but maybe the cost is not getting to live his dream, not getting to be the hero. Maybe to keep them safe what he must do is fade away.)

(Confused, hurting, and alone, he doesn't know what to do or which way to turn. But if he can be a Warrior for no longer, if his days left as hero are few, they are not over. For whatever he decides, he has battles left to fight, and monsters left to slay. Sin, Manson, the rest of the Acts of God, they must be stopped, and it's his responsibility to stop them. He must finish what he has started, and he must stop their evil once and for all.)

(Slowly he gets to his feet in front of the fire. A black sweatshirt, jeans, and hiking boots covers his large frame as takes a few branches from his woodpile and places them strategically on the fire. Walking around the flames he approaches the edge of the summit, looking out at the awe inspiring view before him. For one brief, tiny moment the tension eases from his features as he feels the glorious wonder the mountain has to offer. So much is left to decide and to do, and the tension will return, the burden will not lessen until it is fully lifted. But maybe, just maybe, he'll be ok after all. Only time will tell. For Gabriel Blade, his unlikely allies, and ungodly enemies, Judgement Day is Coming, in more ways then one. For their sake, that had best Prepare To Be Judged.)

(Fade To Black.)

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