Post by Eternity on May 27, 2017 18:58:54 GMT
Our existence is a truly endless circle.
A life lived is a circle filled with stories, told and retold.
Some of the best stories ever told have been great legends, others have been wild fairy tales. Colourful little flights of fantasy, designed to instruct, or simply to inspire our imagination. Told and retold, night after night. As children, these stories are what carry us forward, into life and into sleep.
And though they each end differently, they all begin the same way.
Just as we ourselves do, without a choice.
Once upon a time.
That is how our story began, that is how it has always begun. Through each retelling on each of our sleeplessness nights, that has never changed. Those words have never changed, and they never will, because such intimate familiarity is what brings us comfort.
If we already know how it begins, perhaps we already know how it ends - at least that is the hope.
That is always the hope.
The hope for a happy ending.
And it hope that brings her once more to me, upon this very night, upon this very special night.
Upon the eve of my immortality...
A life lived is a circle filled with stories, told and retold.
Some of the best stories ever told have been great legends, others have been wild fairy tales. Colourful little flights of fantasy, designed to instruct, or simply to inspire our imagination. Told and retold, night after night. As children, these stories are what carry us forward, into life and into sleep.
And though they each end differently, they all begin the same way.
Just as we ourselves do, without a choice.
Once upon a time.
That is how our story began, that is how it has always begun. Through each retelling on each of our sleeplessness nights, that has never changed. Those words have never changed, and they never will, because such intimate familiarity is what brings us comfort.
If we already know how it begins, perhaps we already know how it ends - at least that is the hope.
That is always the hope.
The hope for a happy ending.
And it hope that brings her once more to me, upon this very night, upon this very special night.
Upon the eve of my immortality...
~~~~~
~~~~~
With Brian by her side, tucked safely into her bed on this night, a little blonde girl now awaits her sleep.
She couldn't sleep - not without hearing a bed time story. It had become something of a precious little ritual over these, the first few years of her life. A ritual her loving parents were always so happy to perform, even when they were themselves tired.
Nothing was more important to them than their precious little girl, and so it was that Daddy wearily picked a book from the shelf and came back to sit on the edge of her bed. He tried his best to stifle a yawn, even as he cracked the story book open.
"Gonna have to be a quick one tonight, Princess. Daddy is very tired," he said.
"You work too hard daddy," she said.
"People die, and when they do, it is my job to look after them."
"Why?" she asked.
"So I can look after you and Mommy."
The little girl shook her head, emphatically.
"Why do people die?"
It was a loaded question, one Daddy never expected and one he wasn't sure he could answer in any way a person so young would understand, but still he tried his best, as he always did for her - his only daughter.
"Well...sometimes people are just too sick, or they have an accident. The really lucky ones though, they just get really, really old," explained Daddy.
"Like Grandma?"
"Yes, Grandma was one of the lucky ones. She had a rich and full life before her time came."
"What time, Daddy?"
"Her time to go home, Angel. That time will come for us all one day. Even me and Mommy..."
"Even me, daddy?"
"Yes, but not for a long long long long time yet, sweetie," emphasised Daddy.
"How long, daddy?"
Daddy paused a moment to consider how best to satiate his daughter's curiosity about the natural order of her life, finally he gave her an answer.
"Oh, an eternity," Daddy said. "Now, it's time for your story and then bed."
Daddy looked down at her, kissing her forehead before turning his attention to the open book in his lap.
"Once upon a time," he began. "There were three little pigs..."
She couldn't sleep - not without hearing a bed time story. It had become something of a precious little ritual over these, the first few years of her life. A ritual her loving parents were always so happy to perform, even when they were themselves tired.
Nothing was more important to them than their precious little girl, and so it was that Daddy wearily picked a book from the shelf and came back to sit on the edge of her bed. He tried his best to stifle a yawn, even as he cracked the story book open.
"Gonna have to be a quick one tonight, Princess. Daddy is very tired," he said.
"You work too hard daddy," she said.
"People die, and when they do, it is my job to look after them."
"Why?" she asked.
"So I can look after you and Mommy."
The little girl shook her head, emphatically.
"Why do people die?"
It was a loaded question, one Daddy never expected and one he wasn't sure he could answer in any way a person so young would understand, but still he tried his best, as he always did for her - his only daughter.
"Well...sometimes people are just too sick, or they have an accident. The really lucky ones though, they just get really, really old," explained Daddy.
"Like Grandma?"
"Yes, Grandma was one of the lucky ones. She had a rich and full life before her time came."
"What time, Daddy?"
"Her time to go home, Angel. That time will come for us all one day. Even me and Mommy..."
"Even me, daddy?"
"Yes, but not for a long long long long time yet, sweetie," emphasised Daddy.
"How long, daddy?"
Daddy paused a moment to consider how best to satiate his daughter's curiosity about the natural order of her life, finally he gave her an answer.
"Oh, an eternity," Daddy said. "Now, it's time for your story and then bed."
Daddy looked down at her, kissing her forehead before turning his attention to the open book in his lap.
"Once upon a time," he began. "There were three little pigs..."
~~~~~
And he huffed and he puffed, and the colourless smoke filled your lungs, choking you.
Suddenly you were unable to move, to run, to escape, chained to the house that still stood burning in my memory.
Your vision blurred for a moment before you passed once more through my world.
When the smoke began to clear, and the dust began to settle, you found yourself among a trio of redheaded Angels in pretty white dresses, as they congregate before a seven foot tall bronze effigy of Mother Mary. A teddy bear clutched to each of their chests, and a pink rubber snout attached to their faces, as their heads sway erratically. They begin to chant...
The Three Little Pigs: Even in these chains, you can't stop me.
Even in these chains, you can't stop me.
Even in these chains, you can't stop me.
Even in these chains, you can't stop me...
They then lock eyes with you, staring directly at you as their chants transition into a story told through song.
The Three Little Pigs: Once upon a time
There was a nasty, little piggy filled with pride and greed
Once upon a time
There was an evil, little piggy typical disease
You see this little pig is slowly becoming my own worst enemy.
You see this evil pig she's a blood, blood, blood sucking part of me
Now they slowly start to drift slowly away from one another, clearing the path before the bronze maiden.
The Three Little Piggies: Everywhere I go, you go along with me. She said
Anything you get, is all because of me. I said.
Everything I do, you do along with me. She said.
No matter where you run, you cannot hide from me
There is now a rat-tat-tat coming from the other side - the inside.
The Three Little Piggies: She's got a hold on me
Maybe she is just what they want me to be
Even in these chains, you can't stop me.
Even in these chains, you can't stop me!
Now you hear me screaming from the inside of the maiden.
Pig, pig!
Would you let me in?
Pig, pig!
Would you let me in?
Pig, pig!
I've been everywhere that you've been
Now I've got nothing to lose and everything to win
Pig, pig!
Would you let me in?
Pig, pig!
Would you let me in?
Pig, pig!
I'm already under your skin
'Cause I'm the big bad wolf, now let the games begin.
Now two of the three little piggies move towards the maiden, using all their might to open the door and let me out - or in, depending on your perspective. After a few moments, the maiden cracks open with a puff of purple smoke as you then see me step out into the surrounding darkness, the Shieldmaiden wrapped securely around my waist and a one armed teddy bear clutched securely to my chest.
A bear you recognised instantly as Archie.
You see I am the wolf,
And this dirty, little piggy lives inside of me.
You see every now and then,
I forget which one that I want and which one that I need.
I have come to realize
That both of them have become a necessity
I now have come to realize
That I become which animal I choose to feed.
You hear me then sing directly to the mutilated bear in my possession.
Anything I say you lie along with me. She said.
Every song you sing is all because of me. I said.
Anytime I cry you always laugh at me. She said.
No matter what you do you will belong to me...
Now you hear me drift away from song entirely, gaining a new focus on the opposition before me.
And so here we are once again, Shea.
The ribbon loops around itself like a pretty little bow once more and brings you inevitably to me. A gift taken from the richer, snatched from the hungrier and exchanged between sisters. Such is the path which has lead you here Shea, and whilst I know how far you've come to find me again, I'm afraid the journey has all been in vain.
There is nothing here for you, Shea.
Not anymore.
All the things you've ever valued belong to me now.
Warren...
Archie...
The Shieldmaiden...
Each of them have forgotten you, lost themselves to an eternity you'll never forget.
Perhaps next time you'll learn to take better care of the things you love. Perhaps next time you'll learn not to shun my gifts I bestow upon you so sternly out of hand. Yours will not be a tale of revenge or retribution, which is good because those are the kinds of things that can cost an arm and a leg - you really can't afford to lose any more of those, can you?
Hehehehehehehehahahahahahahahahahahahaha...
No, the tale you want the people to tell is even more wild and unbelievable.
The end you yearn for is far beyond their understanding, but not mine. No, never mine. The storybook ending, the fairy tale conclusion - I know exactly what it is you seek so desperately now Shea, because I sought it myself once upon a time.
You want to break the cycle.
You want the world you knew to make sense again.
You want to go back to the brighter days you remember.
You want to start again, to go back to the beginning, and to reset...
I know that feeling, that desire, that intense hunger, that insatiable thirst - I know each of these things intimately, because once upon a time I wanted nothing more myself. And for that, they condemned me, locked me away until they could figure out something that worked.
Pills?
Group therapy?
Electroshock?
Sedation?
For a time at least, each of them seemed to work. For a time, I was fixed. Numb. Dead, but not in any way that really counts. Only on the inside, where nobody could see - but then their drugs wore off, their words lost all meaning, the sleep was never permanent and their more radical solutions only ended up leaving me in far more pain than they ever took away.
If only our minds were more like our bones.
Maybe then I too would have stood a chance. Maybe then I too would have healed.
Maybe then I too would be fighting forces beyond my ken, just as you do now.
But I suppose that it was never meant to be.
That is not how my story ends, and so it will continue. Another chapter, but not the last for either of us, Shea.
The dream lives for now, so enjoy it while it lasts - I know I will.
Because nothing ever lasts in this world, least of all our second chances.
Try as we might, there is no going back, and so decked in the armour forged from our stubborn resistance, we march on, we move on - onward, ever onward to battle the warriors, their hearts and their heads aflame, burning. Fire for fire. Breath for breath, Dragon meets knight, shield meets shield, and sword meets scythe in the battle for supremacy, for legacy, for immortality and for the ages.
You see me then address Archie directly, as he is still firmly in my grip.
Unfortunately for Shea O'Hara, this isn't some absurd fantasy world. No, this is nothing like all those worlds her Mommy told you both about while you were safely tucked up in bed every night, when the only thing that would silence the bleating sheep of insomnia were stories of that one little piggy who was just that little bit smarter, just that little bit braver - the one little pig who survived his encounter with the big bad wolf by outsmarting him.
ALL LIES! ALL SWEET LITTLE LIES, SHEA!
I am not the wolf, I am the house!
I am the wall and I am the foundation and I am the roof. I am the window, I am the door - a point of entry, a deception, a masquerade, look at me, come into my division, my house - my home. Stand in the door way and look beyond, look for a way in, defeat the keeper of the silver key to the kingdom.
Abandon all hope, ye who would enter my division.
My domain, the lair of the dragon, mind your step. Don't mind the broken bones, the shattered dreams and the stench of death...it always lingers here.
It has been here for years now - ever since some lost little girl's last hope died in the fire.
I remember that day Archie...
Oh yes, I remember that day like it was yesterday...
You know her best, don't you? Tell me, will she ever learn from what we've tried to teach her - or will she continue to sacrifice everything and everybody she loves for all eternity?
How much more can she sacrifice?
It's already cost you both an arm and a good man his innocence.
It is never enough, it will never be enough.
No matter how hard she runs, or how far, chasing an eternity she will never know. A life lived in vain, trying to catch those ahead of her, above her - oh so high...
Like a diamond, the dragon burns across the sky.
Scorching her hope, reduced to ashes, condemned to dust.
Her broken bones laid to rest among all the others.
The fallen, their memories, and their dreams, all are mine...
And they always will be...
Suddenly you were unable to move, to run, to escape, chained to the house that still stood burning in my memory.
Your vision blurred for a moment before you passed once more through my world.
When the smoke began to clear, and the dust began to settle, you found yourself among a trio of redheaded Angels in pretty white dresses, as they congregate before a seven foot tall bronze effigy of Mother Mary. A teddy bear clutched to each of their chests, and a pink rubber snout attached to their faces, as their heads sway erratically. They begin to chant...
The Three Little Pigs: Even in these chains, you can't stop me.
Even in these chains, you can't stop me.
Even in these chains, you can't stop me.
Even in these chains, you can't stop me...
They then lock eyes with you, staring directly at you as their chants transition into a story told through song.
The Three Little Pigs: Once upon a time
There was a nasty, little piggy filled with pride and greed
Once upon a time
There was an evil, little piggy typical disease
You see this little pig is slowly becoming my own worst enemy.
You see this evil pig she's a blood, blood, blood sucking part of me
Now they slowly start to drift slowly away from one another, clearing the path before the bronze maiden.
The Three Little Piggies: Everywhere I go, you go along with me. She said
Anything you get, is all because of me. I said.
Everything I do, you do along with me. She said.
No matter where you run, you cannot hide from me
There is now a rat-tat-tat coming from the other side - the inside.
The Three Little Piggies: She's got a hold on me
Maybe she is just what they want me to be
Even in these chains, you can't stop me.
Even in these chains, you can't stop me!
Now you hear me screaming from the inside of the maiden.
Pig, pig!
Would you let me in?
Pig, pig!
Would you let me in?
Pig, pig!
I've been everywhere that you've been
Now I've got nothing to lose and everything to win
Pig, pig!
Would you let me in?
Pig, pig!
Would you let me in?
Pig, pig!
I'm already under your skin
'Cause I'm the big bad wolf, now let the games begin.
Now two of the three little piggies move towards the maiden, using all their might to open the door and let me out - or in, depending on your perspective. After a few moments, the maiden cracks open with a puff of purple smoke as you then see me step out into the surrounding darkness, the Shieldmaiden wrapped securely around my waist and a one armed teddy bear clutched securely to my chest.
A bear you recognised instantly as Archie.
You see I am the wolf,
And this dirty, little piggy lives inside of me.
You see every now and then,
I forget which one that I want and which one that I need.
I have come to realize
That both of them have become a necessity
I now have come to realize
That I become which animal I choose to feed.
You hear me then sing directly to the mutilated bear in my possession.
Anything I say you lie along with me. She said.
Every song you sing is all because of me. I said.
Anytime I cry you always laugh at me. She said.
No matter what you do you will belong to me...
Now you hear me drift away from song entirely, gaining a new focus on the opposition before me.
And so here we are once again, Shea.
The ribbon loops around itself like a pretty little bow once more and brings you inevitably to me. A gift taken from the richer, snatched from the hungrier and exchanged between sisters. Such is the path which has lead you here Shea, and whilst I know how far you've come to find me again, I'm afraid the journey has all been in vain.
There is nothing here for you, Shea.
Not anymore.
All the things you've ever valued belong to me now.
Warren...
Archie...
The Shieldmaiden...
Each of them have forgotten you, lost themselves to an eternity you'll never forget.
Perhaps next time you'll learn to take better care of the things you love. Perhaps next time you'll learn not to shun my gifts I bestow upon you so sternly out of hand. Yours will not be a tale of revenge or retribution, which is good because those are the kinds of things that can cost an arm and a leg - you really can't afford to lose any more of those, can you?
Hehehehehehehehahahahahahahahahahahahaha...
No, the tale you want the people to tell is even more wild and unbelievable.
The end you yearn for is far beyond their understanding, but not mine. No, never mine. The storybook ending, the fairy tale conclusion - I know exactly what it is you seek so desperately now Shea, because I sought it myself once upon a time.
You want to break the cycle.
You want the world you knew to make sense again.
You want to go back to the brighter days you remember.
You want to start again, to go back to the beginning, and to reset...
I know that feeling, that desire, that intense hunger, that insatiable thirst - I know each of these things intimately, because once upon a time I wanted nothing more myself. And for that, they condemned me, locked me away until they could figure out something that worked.
Pills?
Group therapy?
Electroshock?
Sedation?
For a time at least, each of them seemed to work. For a time, I was fixed. Numb. Dead, but not in any way that really counts. Only on the inside, where nobody could see - but then their drugs wore off, their words lost all meaning, the sleep was never permanent and their more radical solutions only ended up leaving me in far more pain than they ever took away.
If only our minds were more like our bones.
Maybe then I too would have stood a chance. Maybe then I too would have healed.
Maybe then I too would be fighting forces beyond my ken, just as you do now.
But I suppose that it was never meant to be.
That is not how my story ends, and so it will continue. Another chapter, but not the last for either of us, Shea.
The dream lives for now, so enjoy it while it lasts - I know I will.
Because nothing ever lasts in this world, least of all our second chances.
Try as we might, there is no going back, and so decked in the armour forged from our stubborn resistance, we march on, we move on - onward, ever onward to battle the warriors, their hearts and their heads aflame, burning. Fire for fire. Breath for breath, Dragon meets knight, shield meets shield, and sword meets scythe in the battle for supremacy, for legacy, for immortality and for the ages.
You see me then address Archie directly, as he is still firmly in my grip.
Unfortunately for Shea O'Hara, this isn't some absurd fantasy world. No, this is nothing like all those worlds her Mommy told you both about while you were safely tucked up in bed every night, when the only thing that would silence the bleating sheep of insomnia were stories of that one little piggy who was just that little bit smarter, just that little bit braver - the one little pig who survived his encounter with the big bad wolf by outsmarting him.
ALL LIES! ALL SWEET LITTLE LIES, SHEA!
I am not the wolf, I am the house!
I am the wall and I am the foundation and I am the roof. I am the window, I am the door - a point of entry, a deception, a masquerade, look at me, come into my division, my house - my home. Stand in the door way and look beyond, look for a way in, defeat the keeper of the silver key to the kingdom.
Abandon all hope, ye who would enter my division.
My domain, the lair of the dragon, mind your step. Don't mind the broken bones, the shattered dreams and the stench of death...it always lingers here.
It has been here for years now - ever since some lost little girl's last hope died in the fire.
I remember that day Archie...
Oh yes, I remember that day like it was yesterday...
You know her best, don't you? Tell me, will she ever learn from what we've tried to teach her - or will she continue to sacrifice everything and everybody she loves for all eternity?
How much more can she sacrifice?
It's already cost you both an arm and a good man his innocence.
It is never enough, it will never be enough.
No matter how hard she runs, or how far, chasing an eternity she will never know. A life lived in vain, trying to catch those ahead of her, above her - oh so high...
Like a diamond, the dragon burns across the sky.
Scorching her hope, reduced to ashes, condemned to dust.
Her broken bones laid to rest among all the others.
The fallen, their memories, and their dreams, all are mine...
And they always will be...
Well howdy there pardner.