[wam] 034 - last chance
“Your energy’s fading.”
“Then let’s do this fast.”
“You could die.”
“If I die here, at least I’ll be back.”
He watched as Dog gave him that look...the one that meant he was going against his gut. Regardless of all the dogma he preached, however, Tommy knew that knowledge had at least a little to do with instinct. Dog didn’t know the things he did...he didn’t have the instincts.
“Then let the rite begin.”
He was an impressive figure, and a little scary in the light of the fire. There was no ritual, no pageantry, no frills on this display of Dog’s true nature. It was just him, jeans and handcuff amulet, clothed only in sweat and ink. His tattoos glistened over the fine sheen covering his torso in the heat of the fire, flushing his skin and giving the illusion of life in pictures.
In the distance, one of Dog’s fellows began a steady, slow drumbeat. Closing his eyes, Tommy stood and waited until his heart fell in time with the steady thump of the drum.
“Give me your energy. Give me your power. Give me your faith.”
Standing before Dog, Tommy slowly removed his shirt, leaving him naked to the waist as he got to his knees and prostrated himself on the ground. The heat of the fire was making him sweat as his strength faded. His head spun, his heart beat...the world was softening along with his body, muscles loose and warm in the inferno...
Someone lit the ring of kerosene they stood in. A wall of flame surrounded them. The heat grew, making him dizzy.
But still he needed more. He needed flame close enough to kiss flesh and consume. He needed heat, he needed the fire. He needed it to bleed into tissue and muscle, sink into his core and warm the cold pit where his power used to be.
His spirit was blocked, and the only way to free it was to cause an explosion.
Time passed. Tommy didn’t know how much until Dog’s hand touched his bare back, cool compared to the fire surrounding him.
“Give me your energy.”
Tommy straightened, still kneeling as he lifted his hands above his head. “Take it.”
“Tommy...you’re sure about this?”
Meeting Dog’s eyes, dark as he stood in silhouette against a ring of fire, Tommy had to smile. “Hope springs eternal.”
Dog hesitated...then took Tommy’s hands.
“I warned you, brother.”
There was a moment of stillness...then the fire crawled inside.
Beg. Crawl. Submit. Surrender.
It wasn’t the Darkness, it was Dog...nothing cold or black, but fire and light colliding inside of him. Rage, fury...anger. Passion, it clawed at his guts and demanded release through an opening that was cut off. Only one outlet...no way out.
Give in. Give up. Beg. Bow. Surrender.
No.
Surrender.
*No.*
Surrender!
NO!!!
The words never left him, only a scream of primal rage, a howl of rebirth tearing from his throat as he threw his head back and breathed flame into the heavens.
* * * * * * * * * *
Dog was never quite sure of what happened later on, only that one moment he was in the circle...and the next he wasn’t.
He was, however, sure of the pyramid of flame that erupted in the middle of the circle, and he was sure of the sight of Tommy Karras, standing at the top, arms spread and head thrown back. His body was marked with burns, his head smoking...and through it all, he was connected to Dog. Energy to energy, life to life.
He felt the cork pop, he felt the power run free. He felt the fury die and fill with life, with hope...he felt Tommy Karras become.
When the fire died, it died cold. Tommy vanished. The cord was cut, and Dog fell as the Master did.
When he finally got to his feet and was sure he hadn’t scrambled his own brain, he saw Tommy in a circle of scorched earth, dusting himself off and doing the same thing.
As he approached Tommy, Dog didn’t even think before he knelt, bowing his head.
“What the...Dog, get the hell up!”
Rising, he could only smile as he grabbed Tommy by the shoulders and shook him. He was flush and filled with vigor...and he was glowing with power.
“Dude...you need to be looked at.”
He watched as Tommy frowned...then ran a hand back through his hair, coming away with clumps of fried curls.
“What I need is a goddamn beautician.”
Laughing, Dog slung an arm around his shoulders as they walked away from the circle of burned-out trees and brush in the middle of the Angeles National Forest. Stooping for just a moment, he touched the ground and concentrated, not bothering to look back as a few bright green tendrils began to peek out of the dirt.
“No worries, little brother. Connect with the twin faces of evil, their moms was a hairdresser...and last I heard? Jay was killer with the right pair of shears...”
Muse: Tommy Karras
Fandom: Original Character
Words: 870
“Then let’s do this fast.”
“You could die.”
“If I die here, at least I’ll be back.”
He watched as Dog gave him that look...the one that meant he was going against his gut. Regardless of all the dogma he preached, however, Tommy knew that knowledge had at least a little to do with instinct. Dog didn’t know the things he did...he didn’t have the instincts.
“Then let the rite begin.”
He was an impressive figure, and a little scary in the light of the fire. There was no ritual, no pageantry, no frills on this display of Dog’s true nature. It was just him, jeans and handcuff amulet, clothed only in sweat and ink. His tattoos glistened over the fine sheen covering his torso in the heat of the fire, flushing his skin and giving the illusion of life in pictures.
In the distance, one of Dog’s fellows began a steady, slow drumbeat. Closing his eyes, Tommy stood and waited until his heart fell in time with the steady thump of the drum.
“Give me your energy. Give me your power. Give me your faith.”
Standing before Dog, Tommy slowly removed his shirt, leaving him naked to the waist as he got to his knees and prostrated himself on the ground. The heat of the fire was making him sweat as his strength faded. His head spun, his heart beat...the world was softening along with his body, muscles loose and warm in the inferno...
Someone lit the ring of kerosene they stood in. A wall of flame surrounded them. The heat grew, making him dizzy.
But still he needed more. He needed flame close enough to kiss flesh and consume. He needed heat, he needed the fire. He needed it to bleed into tissue and muscle, sink into his core and warm the cold pit where his power used to be.
His spirit was blocked, and the only way to free it was to cause an explosion.
Time passed. Tommy didn’t know how much until Dog’s hand touched his bare back, cool compared to the fire surrounding him.
“Give me your energy.”
Tommy straightened, still kneeling as he lifted his hands above his head. “Take it.”
“Tommy...you’re sure about this?”
Meeting Dog’s eyes, dark as he stood in silhouette against a ring of fire, Tommy had to smile. “Hope springs eternal.”
Dog hesitated...then took Tommy’s hands.
“I warned you, brother.”
There was a moment of stillness...then the fire crawled inside.
Beg. Crawl. Submit. Surrender.
It wasn’t the Darkness, it was Dog...nothing cold or black, but fire and light colliding inside of him. Rage, fury...anger. Passion, it clawed at his guts and demanded release through an opening that was cut off. Only one outlet...no way out.
Give in. Give up. Beg. Bow. Surrender.
No.
Surrender.
*No.*
Surrender!
NO!!!
The words never left him, only a scream of primal rage, a howl of rebirth tearing from his throat as he threw his head back and breathed flame into the heavens.
* * * * * * * * * *
Dog was never quite sure of what happened later on, only that one moment he was in the circle...and the next he wasn’t.
He was, however, sure of the pyramid of flame that erupted in the middle of the circle, and he was sure of the sight of Tommy Karras, standing at the top, arms spread and head thrown back. His body was marked with burns, his head smoking...and through it all, he was connected to Dog. Energy to energy, life to life.
He felt the cork pop, he felt the power run free. He felt the fury die and fill with life, with hope...he felt Tommy Karras become.
When the fire died, it died cold. Tommy vanished. The cord was cut, and Dog fell as the Master did.
When he finally got to his feet and was sure he hadn’t scrambled his own brain, he saw Tommy in a circle of scorched earth, dusting himself off and doing the same thing.
As he approached Tommy, Dog didn’t even think before he knelt, bowing his head.
“What the...Dog, get the hell up!”
Rising, he could only smile as he grabbed Tommy by the shoulders and shook him. He was flush and filled with vigor...and he was glowing with power.
“Dude...you need to be looked at.”
He watched as Tommy frowned...then ran a hand back through his hair, coming away with clumps of fried curls.
“What I need is a goddamn beautician.”
Laughing, Dog slung an arm around his shoulders as they walked away from the circle of burned-out trees and brush in the middle of the Angeles National Forest. Stooping for just a moment, he touched the ground and concentrated, not bothering to look back as a few bright green tendrils began to peek out of the dirt.
“No worries, little brother. Connect with the twin faces of evil, their moms was a hairdresser...and last I heard? Jay was killer with the right pair of shears...”
Muse: Tommy Karras
Fandom: Original Character
Words: 870