Visualization
It was a busy day for T-raze; he had some commercial spots to plan up for a new brand of snickers, a movie role on the table to finesse into a better deal for himself, and a non-profit tour in the poorer sections of the city starting next week to pump up his charity to help youths through extensive training and Parkour.
He was living the dream. Money in the bank, women in his bed, high on adrenaline every day. Mama was proud of her energetic boy as he paid for cruises every month to let her see the world. She deserved it as she worked three jobs to support him in his quest to be the best, when he should have been practicing b-ball and trying to catch the eye of an NBA scout.
That was old school, tried out and bled dry. He was a visionary and knew quick moves and inhuman jumps grabbed the eye of the superhero lovin’ public when it was out on the streets and on the run more than on the court. Nobody cares about a slam dunk when a guy could jump from one building to the next, thirty stories up and no safety net. A shuffle of feet and hands that crisscrossed the obstacle course of everyday life in a matter of seconds, proof that nobody had to be a rat in a maze if they wanted to get out.
Now, this poor-ass entrepreneur is talking his ear off about visualized races across roofs and parks, about jumping off heights and trying to hit invisible bull’s-eyes. T-raze was on the rise but he’s not rich or famous enough yet to pay or need bodyguards, so he has to deal with the desperate fool by himself.
Before he got the chance to get a word in edgewise, gunshots deafeningly rang right next to him and he saw hooded man stumble back and forth, saw the guy fall on top of a greasy red puddle, saw the puddle writhe and squirm into the man, saw tentacles burst from out of nowhere, saw that one hit him right in the gut, saw that he was being sucked into it. Like a straw, he was being slurped up with a straw.
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It was a busy day for Pat Williams, he had several new patents to get written up, had to record another bit for his vlog on the new trends popping up in the most exciting city in the world, had to illegally climb some buildings to get killer pics of what he called landmark collectibles.
He was living the dream. Followers online, creative freedom, high on adrenaline every day. Sure, his parents thought that he was wasting his life by not following a career path, but he was going to show them when his next idea hit big. Real-life events tailored after video games that had tailored themselves from real-life. Geeks are no longer the shut-ins they once were and he was gonna capitalize on this by hitting the market first.
It was going to be high-tech, brand new and never seen before. He was a visionary and knew that physical activity was getting a boost again as long as there was a reward system in place. Right now, he was getting his locations in mind, taking pictures and tagging them with a UV-reflective paint that glowed blue when it was a landmark collectible and purple when it had a hint from him on how to play the game. Over two hundred done and soon he’d be set.
Now, he’d run into T-raze, the rising star himself and had to get the guy into the fold. He had followed the man since the beginning and knew his entire history. If anyone could pull off the sick events he had planned, timed races following green orbs and invisible bull’-eyes that only showed up if wearing the right eye gear, it be him.
Before he got the chance to sweeten the deal, a body slammed against him as he felt gunshots blast way too close for his personal comfort, felt the guy behind him fall as the floor shook just enough, felt a weird red puddle soak through his shoes and against his skin, felt it burn as his mouth gaped open unsure of what to shout, felt a fleshy pole punch through his throat before he could sound anything out, felt it spread outward and pull him in. Like a vacuum, he was being pulled inside out.
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It was a busy day for the virus codenamed Blacklight. So much to learn and do. So many new toys to try out. So many dreams and hopes to accomplish. Mercer would get his revenge, T-raze would be the best and Pat would have the best play his games.
It would be fun as it formed its web of neurons to work as a brain and forgot that it was all really mindless entertainment.