Ten Years Prior: Part I
<<<<Deceiving the Lie: Part XI (B)
Ten Years Prior = Massive Flashback
Warnings: Do I even need to tell you that there is profanity is this? Okay, well then, violence.
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“Whatever you want, I don’t have it, I’m not giving it to you, or your mother already said no,” Jericho said as his eldest son walked into his study.
“Dad!” Dresden huffed.
“What?” Jericho hardly looked up from the inscribed text he was studying on his desk.
“I’ve been watching him all week. I’m not a babysitter!”
Jericho looked up then. Peeking out from behind Dresden’s legs was his youngest, Junior. Jericho sighed. He had to admit that his kids had been getting the short end of the stick lately. He was hardly home, and Ryan had been busy keeping a house that was becoming increasingly crowded with refugees. Youths mostly, orphans of the jailed, the missing, and the dead. Some had simply been passed on to Lees, their parents hoping that Jericho could offer their children sanctuary and spare them the fate that was meeting so many of their kind these days.
With Ryan playing mother to so many others, Dresden had been charged with keeping after his brother. He was clearly getting tired of it, and Jericho Jr. didn’t seem to be too happy about the arrangement either.
Jericho motioned toward the little boy, “Come on, kid.”
The boy’s face remained expressionless, but he sidled out from behind his brother and made his way toward his father. Jericho smirked. A doppledanger of his wife, his youngest was an odd one. He didn’t talk much. In fact, Jericho could count on one hand the amount of times that he had heard the boy utter a complete sentence. He rarely smiled. He didn’t play with toys, but rather stared at them with an air of mystification. When he could, he clung to the nearest adult, but it never seemed to be a comfort to him, simply a way to avoid being near other children. The only time he even appeared remotely childish was on the sporadic occasion when he sucked his thumb.
Ryan fretted over the 5-year-old’s peculiarities, particularly his silence, but Jericho found the little oddball to be endearing. The only issue was the kid’s aura. It was growing into something substantial, and it was clear that he would have worrying abilities.
Jericho and Ryan had considered themselves lucky with their first. Dresden at most, was latent, and they weren’t even sure of that. Ryan was sure he had some form of Intuition, as the teen had never been hurt in his life, able to avoid falling tree branches, jump out from in front of moving cars, stomp out burgeoning fires. Jericho believed that the boy just had good reflexes.
His aura didn’t have the psychic markers of a latent, and Jericho enjoyed thinking that he had a son who was merely normal. Well, normal enough. Dresden was cocky and bit self-important, but Jericho didn’t mind that. What was important was that Dresden was off the radar. As long he kept his head low, and his nose out of other people’s business, Rowanne would never pay him a lick of attention. He could have a natural life inside the psychic world or outside of it. He had a choice. He had a chance.
The younger of the two boys, however, had clearly been passed over by that lucky stroke. He would be psychic, and he would be strong. He wouldn’t have a choice. Jericho only hoped he’d have a chance.
“Your knucklehead brother is getting on your nerves?” Jericho asked the little boy.
Junior shrugged shyly, and looked down, leaning toward his father’s chest.
“You’re a better man than I. I would’ve suplexed him by now.”
Dresden rolled his eyes and turned to leave.
“Hey, you’re just going to cut and run?” Jericho called as Junior tucked himself into his lap.
“I have things to do,” Dresden answered.
“Like clean your room?”
The boy scowled and changed the subject. “Mom told me to tell you Chauncey is outside, but he won’t come in.”
Jericho shook his head. “Of course he won’t come it. Why would he make my life easier by just coming inside the house? You teenagers and your… emotions.”
Dresden shrugged and was out the door.
Jericho looked down at his youngest. “Do me a favor. Don’t ever become a teenager, okay?”
The little boy nodded, his face blank.
“Great. Let’s go get the Chauncester.”
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“Chauncey,” Jericho called to the red-head who had set up shop on the edge of his property. “You can come inside the house if you want. There is plenty of room.”
“Thank you, Mr. Lee,” Chauncey replied. “But… I think I’m okay out here.”
Jericho raised his eyebrows skeptically and walked down the bluff to join him, trying not to trip over Junior, who had plastered himself to his leg.
He sat down next to Chauncey, in awe at how tall the teen was getting. He was only seventeen, and Jericho could see that he was at least the same height as him. “Well, if your parents are doing anything, they’re feeding you,” Jericho said, readjusting as his son slumped down ungracefully on top of him.
Chauncey stiffened. “You trust me around him?”
Jericho examined the child, lightly swatting the thumb that was making its way into his mouth. “Sure,” he said. “You can have him if you want him.”
Chauncey’s posture didn’t relax and he looked away, the humor lost.
“Oh, come on kid,” Jericho sighed. “You’re about as dangerous as the blunt end of a piece of cotton.”
The teen didn’t reply.
“He’s such a doodee head, right?” Jericho asked his son, pulling the boy’s thumb from his mouth a second time. “Say ‘yes, Dad, he’s such a doodee head’.”
Junior only leaned against him, the corners of his mouth twitching into a grin.
“I’ll settle for doodee head. I’ll pay you five bucks if you say doodee head. Doodee. Dooooo-deeee head.”
Chauncey looked over as the older man sounded out the juvenile epithet.
“Doodee head. You can do it. I bet, when I’m not looking, you say it all the time. Doodee head.”
Junior spoke up quietly. “Mommy.”
Jericho paused in consideration before tilting his head from side to side. “Eh, close enough. Same meaning, different pronunciation.”
“Ha. Hysterical,” a woman’s voice came from behind them.
“You think you’re slick. Thought you could sneak up on me,” Jericho said with a grin, turning to look at Ryan.
“Jay Jay gave me away,” Ryan said, pursing her lips.
“You wish. I knew you were coming out even before you knew you were coming out here.”
“A lucky guess isn’t a premonition.”
“Keep telling yourself that.” Jericho nodded. “Open up your aura woman, this ain’t hide and seek.”
Ryan kept her aura shielded in clear defiance. “My shoe will be playing hide and seek up your ass.”
“Ryan. Language,” Jericho feigned shock, and motioned to Chauncey and the little boy that was climbing over his legs. “Think of the children.”
“I am thinking of the children. Do you know what time it is? Jay is not your drinking buddy. You can’t have him out to all hours of the night.” She reached out and embraced the child as he climbed up the bluff.
“Why? What does he have to do tomorrow?”
Ryan frowned, but she was clearly trying to hide a smile. She looked over to the teen sitting beside her husband. “Chauncey, do your parents know where you are?”
Chauncey looked down without answering, his cheeks flushing with guilt.
Ryan seemed to expect his reaction. “It’s no matter, honey. Come inside. I’ve made a bed for you.”
Jericho glanced over at the teen before bringing Ryan’s attention back to him. “We’ll be in soon. Give us a minute. Why don’t you go make a bed for me? If you do a good job, you can sleep in it too.”
Ryan gave him an unmoved expression before turning on her heel, gripping her son’s hand behind her. “Why don’t you save me the effort and smack yourself in the forehead?”
“Don’t try to resist me, woman,” Jericho said as she walked away.
“Stop looking at my butt,” she called in response.
“When my eyes fall out of my head.”
“Mommy,” Junior said quietly, “Daddy called Chauncey a doodee head.”
“It takes one to know one, baby,” Ryan replied.
“Oh, that’s cold Jay. That was a full sentence, too,” Jericho called after them.
Jericho turned back around. “Did you know she was behind me?” he asked Chauncey.
“No,” Chauncey answered.
“Yeah, me neither.” He sighed contentedly. “I can’t believe that woman let me impregnate her. Twice.”
Chauncey blushed again.
“Oh, sorry,” Jericho patted him on the shoulder. “I don’t mean it the way you think. Well, maybe I kinda mean it the way you think. But, one day you’ll know exactly what I’m talking about. You’ve got a girlfriend?”
Chauncey shook his head.
Jericho waved it off. “Eh, their nothing but trouble. Girls. Women. Females. The whole lot. It’s because they know things. They read. You know, books,” he emphasized as if it were completely unbelievable. “Men don’t read books, and we’re at a disadvantage because of it. It’s the chick lit. The romance novels. They read them and they get these shitball ideas of love in their heads and suddenly you’re on the defensive. I mean, you were always on the defensive, even when you were on the offensive, but now you’re really on the defensive, because you’ve got Fabio out there with the hair and the abs just fucking it up for everyone.” He paused in his rant. “But you should get a girlfriend. They’re nice.”
“I don’t really get to meet a lot of people,” Chauncey explained, head down.
“Well, whose fault is that doodee head? You spending all your time on the outskirts of everything, of course you’re not going to meet anyone. The edge of my backyard isn’t exactly a teenage hotspot. You consider going back to school?”
Chauncey shook his head. “I can’t.”
“Why not? You’re taking the serums right?”
He rubbed his neck anxiously, and mumbled, “They don’t work as well as they used to.”
Jericho let a moment pass before responding. “Well that just means you’re not pre-vamp anymore. You’re starting to change over to the full blown variety.”
“I know,” the teen said a bit harshly, but Jericho paid it no mind.
“And it doesn’t mean much of anything. You might be losing the ability to maintain your aura, but there are donors all over who’ll share their aura with you,” he said. “Myself included. Ryan included. Most of the people who run in and out of that hell forsaken house included. You don’t have to make it into something unnatural.”
Chauncey blinked. “It is unnatural.”
“Ah, your face is unnatural,” Jericho replied.
They fell quiet, but Chauncey’s lips pulled into a reluctant smile.
“Don’t fight it,” Jericho said. “I’m hilarious.”
Chauncey smile grew wider, and the older man gave one back in return.
“Why’d you name your youngest after you, and not your oldest?” Chauncey asked, suddenly curious.
“We’re not very original. Dresden is named after my father. We would have named the last one after Ryan’s dad, but her father’s name is Ignacious, and frankly, I’ll be gotdammed.” Jericho shrugged. “But I’m with you. The boy should have been named Ryan Jr. But the woman didn’t think that was as funny as I did.”
“Ugh, I’m getting old.” Jericho grunted as he pushed himself to his feet. “Alright kid, let’s go. There’s no need for you to be out here. Come on inside before Ryan locks us out. And she’ll do it. Believe you, me.”
“Can I just have a few more minutes, sir?”
“If you even call me sir again, I will crack your skull, but sure. Just get in there before Ryan’s mouth starts going, because once it starts, it’s so very hard to get it to stop.”
“Okay,” Chauncey nodded.
Jericho began to make his way up the bluff back toward his home when he paused and turned back around. “Chauncey,” he said. “I see things… about you. About your future. And you know that I’m the first person to tell you that the future is unpredictable. It can always change. But occasionally… occasionally I get it right.”
Chauncey fidgeted nervously. “What do you mean, sir?”
“You called me sir again.”
Chauncey looked down. “Sorry.”
Jericho smiled. “Just don’t give anyone a reason to worry about you, kid. There are people here who care about you and could give a flying Chihuahua about you being pre-vamp. Don’t abandon that.” He winked and turned back up the bluff and disappeared from sight.
Chauncey sat for a moment, considering Jericho’s words. In spite of them, he knew he wouldn’t spend the night in the house. He had never planned to. There were too many people, children. He wasn’t going to risk it. He felt safe near the Lees, which was why he always found himself lingering on their property, but he wasn’t going to jeopardize them. He stood up and walked off, content to find another bluff to sleep on that night.
It was nearly a half hour later before anyone realized that Chauncey was gone.
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Mercer ran her hands up Nyxon’s chest and leaned forward to kiss him deeply. She knew that occasionally he would use his charms as a Siren to enhance her passion for him, and she didn’t mind, for there were times where she felt herself doing the same to him, but tonight, there was none of that. He kissed her back, but he didn’t return her embrace. His demeanor was solemn and there was a noticeable tension in his lanky frame.
She pulled back, her own tension rising to match his, and let her arms slide slowly from his shoulders. She could not say that she hadn’t been expecting this. For a long moment, the only sound was the water falling over the peak of the reservoir dam they were standing on.
Nyxon watched her take a step back from him and clenched his jaw. “Let me take you in,” he said.
She didn’t answer, only glaring at him. She knew that there was but so long they could have kept it up. The hiding and early morning rendezvous would eventually have to end and talk of real life shit would take its place. But that didn’t mean she wasn’t going to pissed to all high holy fucking hell.
“You’ll be branded,” he continued. “That’s unavoidable, you’re a level 6. That you’ve managed to go this long…”
“Nobody’s touching my face.” Mercer felt her cheeks flush with anger. “I’m too pretty for that shit.”
“Then join the fight. There is no vampirism in your family line and if you haven’t shown signs of it yet then it’s very unlikely that you ever will,” he told her. “Pledge your allegiance to Rowanne and she’ll spare you this degradation.”
“I wouldn’t pledge my toenail clippings to that whore.”
Nyxon released a deep breath out of his nose, and looked away. “Then allow yourself to be marked and be done with it. You’re being so stupid. You are not a notable threat. Don’t make an unnecessary enemy out of The Calling –”
“What’s left of The Calling,” she tried to cut him off.
He ignored her. “ – when all that is required of you is cooperation with Rowanne’s terms.”
“Oh, right. The only requirement is my cooperation with that crazy bitch. If I only cooperate. If I only let her press burning iron into my face. If I only let her dictate my every move. If I only let her treat me like I’m less than fucking human!”
He returned his gaze. “It’ll be worse if you resist.”
“I’ll take my chances,” she said, folding her arms.
“Mercer,” he said her name lowly and looked up, his eyes showing a hint of emotion.
“Why do you even care?” she asked coldly. “Did Rowanne give you permission to keep fucking me if you brought me in without a fuss?”
His eyes hardened, and he looked away. He was quiet for a moment before smiling lightly. “Something like that,” he said. His tone had changed. He was no longer negotiating with her. “Well, it seems like we’ll have to do this your way.”
“It’s the only way I ever do it,” she replied.
“That’s unfortunate.”
“For you.”
In the corner of her eye, she could see a figure making its way up the side of the dam.
Before she could even turn her head to get a good look at the newcomer, an elbow was in her face and she was falling to the hard concrete.
“That was a bitch-shot, Levin,” she said from the ground, pressing her hand to her face. She hated astral projectors.
John’s auroric self and corporeal self realigned themselves in one swift motion and he shrugged. “Yeah, well, you were open.”
“You were open,” Nyxon agreed. He took a step back and began undoing his cufflinks.
Mercer stood up, and wiped the trickle of blood that had begun trailing from her nose. “Where’s your friend, Mr. Hazard?” she asked, trying to make her voice sound flippant.
“I believe he had a prior engagement,” Nyxon said quietly.
“He’ll be pleased to know you were thinking about him,” John added. “I’ll make sure to inform him.”
“Alright. If you pussies think that you can take me on without him, let’s go.” Mercer took a deep breath and turned around, already building a massive cloud of energy around herself. “Mr. Levin, if you want to fight dirty, I’ll be happy to oblige. And Mr. Alexander, I know this is sudden, but I think we should see other people.”
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Jax jerked up in annoyance as the doorbell rang a third time. “Fucking hell,” he complained. “I’m not home!” he yelled toward the door. It rang again in response.
He looked down at the leggy brunette who was spread out before him. “Are you expecting someone?” he asked.
A lazy smile crossed her lips and she shook her head slowly.
“Should I answer it?”
She shook her head again, her eyes fluttering close as if it were an effort for her to have opened them in the first place.
Jax chuckled. “Somehow, I don’t think I can trust your judgment at the moment.”
“How this pains me,” he said before easing her off his lap. He sighed and stood up. “Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do. At least not until I come back.”
She sighed something incoherent back to him, and Jax considered disemboweling whoever was at his door.
Jax yanked open the front door and rolled his eyes at the sight of Jericho Lee standing behind it.
Jericho frowned back at him, his eyes darting toward the reason why Jax was so delayed in coming to the door.
Jax squinted as the light of the sun charged through the door and into the dimly lit house. His aura recoiled as the light hit him, but it was a minor discomfort. Whatever energy he lost, he’d easily find a way to get it back.
Despite this, he scowled, “You couldn’t come to scold me at a more appropriate hour, Jericho?”
“I’m not here to scold you,” the man answered bluntly, standing a ways back from the door. “Is Chloe here?”
“She isn’t,” Jax responded spitefully. “Are you returning the boy? It’s about time you gave him back. It’s been weeks.”
“You need to get in touch with your wife.” Jericho’s lips formed a flat line on his face. “Rowanne has your son.”
AHHHH! This was awesome! I love Jericho. *floaty pink hearts*
And as much as I can’t stand Mercer, she is pretty badass. Crazy as all hell too. That’ll probably be how she’s managed to keep from being branded all these years.
Chauncey nooooo! He should have just gone in the house!
Jax you FAIL at parenting. Fail fail fail.
Penelope
July 18, 2009 at 1:11 pm
Hehehehe.
Mercer is not very likable but yes, she will take you down fast and hard.
I knew Jericho in my brain but he was never a fleshy character. I was so focused on the details of his death, which we’ll find out about later, and not the details of his life. So when I decided to flashback, I was kind of pissed because I knew I would have to flesh his character (and a couple of other characters) out more than I initially intended. But it came really easily. Like he was sitting in my brain all along. And he sooo fits. I really like him too.
Chauncey was foolish, yeah, and got himself into trouble, but it is very in his character to walk off like that. He’d prefer isolation rather than actually have to confront other people and subsequently have to confront his feelings about himself.
Hahaha, Jax is one a character who should have probably been banned from procreating.
Veron
July 18, 2009 at 1:39 pm
Oh man, poor Chauncey! At least we know he does get out of it relatively okay…
Jericho seems like a good guy. And man, I’d figured Junior was weird as a kid, but I wouldn’t have guessed him to be that weird.
If no other good can be said about Mercer, at least she makes her important decisions and sticks to them.
Heh. I wonder what Jax was like when Chauncey was a really young child. Probably scarred the poor kid several times over.
Dinuriel
July 18, 2009 at 3:57 pm
Yeah, that’s why this whole thing is going to be a cheat. We know what happens
.
Jericho is a good guy, but he has his own issues that will come up. Jericho Jr. on the other hand was an oddball, and the death of his father didn’t help him to turn out any less wierd as a teen.
Mercer is stubborn as hell, and once she makes up her mind, it’s pretty much over from there.
Jax was not much different, but he was probably a better father when Chauncey was younger. Once Chauncey started getting bitter and began showing that he didn’t approve of the lifestyle, that was when they started growing apart.
Veron
July 18, 2009 at 4:53 pm
I’ve never tried to imagine what Jericho could look like before. So far I liked him, you made an awesome job in this one and I can’t wait to see what’s next
.
ahh I have to say.. I really like Mercer! She sure can be a pain in the ass (most of the time), but I’m also sure (or at least I want to) she’s not total drown in the badass darkside of the force
You go girl!
seeing_red
July 18, 2009 at 6:29 pm
Thanks seeing_red! The sim Jericho actually isn’t Dresden and Jericho Jr.’s sim dad. He’s like Dresden’s uncle, I think, and Jericho Jr. was just a tweaked male clone of Ryan’s sim. Eyan also isn’t Dresden’s mother, although she is related. I can’t remember exactly how I screwed up that family, but I had to be careful with the sim I chose for Jericho just because there had to be some sort of resemblance. He fits. In terms of the written character, yeah, I had to spend a minute fleshing him out, but I do like him also. Although he’ll be showing his flaws soon, because I think it’s clear that I can’t have a character that isn’t just a little bit messed up.
Haha! Mercer is a hard ass, definitely, and while she isn’t down with Rowanne’s side of badness, you’ll soon find that she’s involved with something that may be just as crazy.
Veron
July 18, 2009 at 9:08 pm
I’m so glad you decided to take the time to clear everyones past up. This is one of the few stories I’ve read where I actually felt like something was lost by not knowing the entire history of everyones past. But now I feel like anything that was left a blank in my mind will be explained.
I forgot about Mercer and who she was until this. I couldnt remember and then she got pissed and it all came back. Girl kicks ass.
And I cant decide if Jax is better with short hair or long. Either way he’s delicious. Its easy to see why people would…give themselves to be with him. But im interested to see his protective side come out. And just how much stronger he and Chloe really are compared to everyone else. I’m sure their frequent blood activites give them an advantage. Right?
Sinclair
July 19, 2009 at 2:29 am
Hi Sinclair! Yeah, I was gonna try and release small tidbits of information across time, but that sucks. And I got a couple of requests to start doing a simfic50 with the story past in mind… but I’m afraid of simfic50, so that wasn’t going to happen. But after re-reading my chapter five, it was kind of obvious that I needed to lay a better foundation, because it was crazy. Especially because I have all this frickin’ characters that are deeply interconnected, but no one but me knows their connections. Idiotic.
Yeah, we haven’t seen Mercer in a while, but she is absolutely a hard ass. Not the nicest, but she takes care of herself, definitely.
Hahaha, It’s his character. One of my readers once called him a sex bomb, which is like the most appropriate description. I actually don’t think he’s my most attractive sim, per se, something about his mouth gets on my nerves, but the character is like… whew, take a breath. Which is odd because he’s also a jackass.
He does care about his son, absolutely, he’s just a bad parent. So the protective side of him will come out… it its own way. He and Chloe absolutely have a one up. Their auras are very well taken care of, with near constant influxes of new energy, so YES they would be much stronger than their counterparts. Something that I’m totally going to get into when Rowanne makes her appearance in this… but its a matter of how they use it. They are about to get involved with some people who are just as strong, if not stronger, than they are.
Thanks for commenting Sinclair!
Veron
July 19, 2009 at 8:55 am
haha i frickin love you, you’re hilarious!! ^__^
Jericho is awesome… i loved seeing him like this. He had me rolling around in giggles for a good bit.
I can’t stand Mercer usually… but she’s awesome in this! Makes me think she might be misunderstood,… so I’ll have to give her a better shot later.
And Jax… likes his distractions doesn’t he? He’s still one of my favorites though. I love his skin. Is it Enayla?
the_mctavishams
July 19, 2009 at 10:17 am
Haha, yeah Jericho is a likable guy, but he also has his stuff. Not everyone likes him. Granted, the people who don’t like him aren’t very likable themselves, but we’ll come to know him through this chapter. I think I have about twelve parts, and he’s in about half of them.
You probably understood her correctly the first time, Ha! But, she has reasons to be such a hard ass. She’s a jerk, and she’s a stubborn jerk. But she sticks to her guns and she isn’t afraid of much. I think in this case it was one evil against another, and you have to choose sides. Nyxon is the worst, as he shows very clearly here, so Mercer doesn’t look so bad by comparision.
Hehe, Jax very much enjoys being distracted. His skin is an Enayla. I wanna say Pixie hero… but I’m not sure. Pretty much all my genetics are enayla. Eyes and skins. For my latents I use Barcelonista contacts. And for my “normal” people, I use… no idea. I’ll find out, but yes, all my skins are enayla. I think I have one sim in there with an oepu/enayla mixed skin, but I’m sure it was accidental. I don’t generally like the mixed skins, and Enayla is just so boss. Fangirl love.
Veron
July 19, 2009 at 10:50 am
Oooh, first of all, I will say this… I LOVE how you did John’s little aura move! Very cool and original.
The poses this time actually seemed a bit more subdued than usual. I didn’t notice anything off-the-wall crazy and they didn’t steal my attention away from the actual story. So I wouldn’t worry about it!
Mercer’s ending comment made me giggle. I think I’m beginning to see how she got that lovely scar on her face.
Jericho was a silly man, wasn’t he? Poor Ryan, LOL! Little Jericho is adorable. And Chauncey was a little emo kid, how cute. Poor, disturbed Chauncey… and he’s caught by Rowanne. Kudos to douchebag Jax for that one, LOL!
Mao
July 19, 2009 at 10:29 am
OH MY GOD, Mao, I’m shit at photoshop. It totally didn’t come out how I wanted it to, so after a while I was just like, send it to hell, I don’t care. Like the fence is all wonky. I wanted to shoot John in the face.
But thank you
Hehe.
Really? I swore that that little thing with Chauncey and Jericho would look camp. And Jax’s scene with the chick, I kept thinking I was overdoing it. Well, good, I’m glad it doesn’t come across that way. I’m my own worse critic.
This actually isn’t where Mercer got the scar on her face, ALTHOUGH, she could have gotten scarred, but we’ll see next update why she didn’t. The scar happened in chapter 1 (?). I hate that chapter I don’t wanna look. But she did get it fighting with John and Nyxon, just not in this John and Nyxon fight. I’m going to revisit that whole deal in this flashback thingy.
Jericho was a CLOWN. And well loved, which made his death that much tougher to deal with.
Chauncey was angsty (I think all my characters were angsty teen brats) and had major self-esteem issues. And really he never does get over them.
Jax wins the parenting of the year award. Chloe was runner up. XD
Veron
July 19, 2009 at 10:59 am
Jericho Lee is SO COOL! I love him, man! I totally laughed throughout his conversations, especially when he told Chauncey to admit he’s hilarious. XD It’s too bad that he’s not in the present anymore. :\
I can’t believe Nyxon actually betrayed Mercer, he’s… yuck. I don’t even know how to say it. When he supposedly loved her? That’s just… disgusting, he’s a disgusting man. D8
I’m glad to know that this was simply the past, that Chauncey will be alright in the end, though… oh man, what’s Rowanne gonna do to him? :S
Ning
July 20, 2009 at 12:31 pm
Yeah, he’s a clown. I knew he had to be a likable guy, and influential. He turned out better than I thought.
Nyxon’s priorities are screwed. And they never straightened out. But he thought he was doing the right thing. He really believed in Rowanne’s crazy cause.
We know Chauncey will be alright, but this little incident did not help his self-esteem at all. He doesn’t want to be vampiric in the first place, and now he’s being persecuted for it. Suck. We find out whats going on with him either in the next update or the one directly after the next one. However it breaks up to keep from being massive.
.
Veron
July 20, 2009 at 1:27 pm
I don’t know why but that last bit reminded me so much of kids. “Can Chloe come out and play?” Jax probably wouldn’t be much help in this situation but Chloe…damn! She is a force as you have already shown us.
I loved this. I enjoyed meeting Jericho. I can see why he became such a hero for so many and why his legend lives. It felt like the right time to add this to me.
It was actually touching seeing Nyxon and Mercer in an intimate setting. He sure turned on her fast. Very cool move with John; I am always in awe.
Gayl
July 20, 2009 at 2:52 pm
Haha, “Can Chloe come out and play?”
“NO! I’M BANGING ANOTHER WOMAN!”
Hehe.
He was a jokester and an all around likable guy, while also being a big deal among the Rowanne-dissenters. After his death, it felt like the fight would completely collapse if people knew about it, so Ryan kept it secret. But it was still rough for those who knew.
Nyxon was a cad. We’ll totally see more of both of thme, but I think if Mercer had just went and gotten branded, they would have still been together. Unfortunately he more dedicated to the cause than he was to her.
I don’t think I was describing astral projection very well, so I was like… I have to show this crap. It was death to edit, but I’m glad it came across well.
THANKS!
Veron
July 20, 2009 at 4:31 pm
Quick question! Each character in the ‘character background’ has a level of strength, these strength standards were definitions made by ‘The Calling’ weren’t they? So the maximum level a psychic can become IS a 8 or the ones with ‘unknown’ strength may be stronger than 8?
seeing_red
July 20, 2009 at 4:57 pm
Yeah, I probably should have explained that
I think I talked about it a total of one time, so I fail. Sorry!
The ‘level’ of strength is a standard that was made by The Calling, you are absolutely right. They determined that psychic strength only went up to level 8. Those who have “unknown” strength have not been in the custody of The Calling (meaning they were never members of the organization, they were never captured, or if they were members/captured they were too young to have been ranked) and therefore no one really knows how strong they are. HOWEVER, there is a possibilty that The Calling got their little scale wrong, or never encountered a psychic stronger than level 8 and one of these “unknown” psychics is stronger than anyone who has ever been ranked on that scale.
Exaple: Loris Mosai has been doing his own thing since day one, and generally, has been left alone by The Calling, and subsequently by Rowanne, because he’s gained enough of a following to be able to take her down if he so felt like it. Not to mention, he’s a pretty powerful dude in terms of ability. He’s never stepped foot on “Calling” territory, and no one from The Calling has ever stepped foot on his territory. Therefore, he’s never been put on the scale.
I’m rambling… Am I making sense though? I’ll figure out an easier explanation and post it in the Background section when I start adding more characters.
Veron
July 20, 2009 at 5:22 pm
I’m so glad you decided to do this! Yeah it might take you a while but it really does add so much!
I still hate Jax. Yeah – can Chloe come out and play? When is Jax NOT banging another woman? Maybe he needs to put the tie on the door on the rare occasion when he’s actually ‘not otherwise engaged’.
I still love Chauncey.
Wonderful, wonderful character study of Jericho. Talk about a hero. Pitch perfect, every line, every shot.
Beautiful, beautiful work.
S.B.
July 20, 2009 at 5:24 pm
Beth! I was thinking about you! It came to the point where I didn’t have a choice but to do this. Chapter 5 was really awful. I was trying to explain everything while also keeping the story going, and there was just no way. It does extend the story, but I had to add it.
Hehehehe, Jax was probably a bigger jackass when he was younger… granted “younger” = “49 and should at least have some sense in his head” but yeah what can you do…
We’ll actually see that Chloe isn’t all butterflies and roses either, and in a way, they fit… I mean we already know that Chloe can be a bit of a loon when she wants to, but Chauncey isn’t just running from his father. He’s running from that entire lifestyle, Mom included.
Jericho is my one true hero… at least as far towards a “hero” as I’m willing to go
. We’ll meet another character that might be heroesque… but… he’s not. He’s a loon. So Jericho pretty much fills the role that I can’t let anyone else fill. And of course he’d be dead in present tense, hehe. Garcia would probably be my tortured hero, but he’s not really the best of guys either… meh.
THANK YOU!!!
Veron
July 20, 2009 at 5:59 pm
Total sense!
I was thinking about Mosai when I asked you about it actually.
He give me the creeps and I don’t even want to think about him in a bad mood :/
seeing_red
July 20, 2009 at 6:41 pm
HAHA, awesome!
Loris a big, pervy asshead. And maybe someone to be creeped out about. We’ll meet him this week.
Veron
July 20, 2009 at 8:04 pm
Great update!
Jericho was a funny man before he died, lol. To bad he couldn’t live and continue with his jokes and what not. It was funny seeing that him and Ryan part.
I feel bad for Chauncey for being in such a horrible family, I hope he can get away from them some time if they just stop coming back!
Mercer and Nyxon!? Wow I would have never imagined it! But now I see how it didn’t last, lol.
And that is just playing dirty! I bet she got him back good too.
Jax is an ass hole, he’s always been one, nothing different really. And Chloe as always being out and getting new subjects I should say!
And now I wonder what they’re going to do now!
This was a great update!
Can’t wait for more!
Damon
July 20, 2009 at 6:58 pm
Hey Damon!
Jericho was a clowny guy, yeah. He enjoyed making people laugh, but he could get serious when he had to.
Actually, after this, Jax and Chloe start harrassing Chauncey a little bit… trying to play parents, but he never really goes back in their direction.
Mercer and Nyxon! Yep! Before he died, Nyxon told Garcia that he loved Mercer, and a little before there were some hints that they were together, but for the most part, they’ve spent most of their time apart.
That’s exactly what Chloe is doing! I should have an update up on Thursday or Friday… or Saturday
.
Thanks!
Veron
July 20, 2009 at 8:08 pm
Oh my!!! what an evil way to end this chapter!!!
Good thing I don’t have to wait till next update!! I’m going to read right now!!!
I loved the pics with the Astral Projector…lol he looks really cool doing his thing!!
Great job!!!
s@ndy
August 24, 2009 at 12:28 am
Hi S@ndy! I can’t believe you’ve gone through half this story in like three days XD. Amazing.
The astral projector pics were a beyotch to do. I wanted to throw my computer out a window, but I felt I had to just because I haven’t been really clear on what the hell a projector was. I’m glad you liked!
Veron
August 24, 2009 at 10:16 am
Yow. Am I behind. But this is a real interesting, intriguing idea, a look back. 10 Years! And hey! Nyxon!
My man!
“I wouldn’t pledge my toenail clippings to that whore.”
LMAO!
And Jax, with a woman spread before him like a buffet, and can I say he is hot in that ‘opening the door’ shot?
Very cool.
~Drew
September 17, 2009 at 11:55 am
Hey Karen! Eh, this started out intriguing and now I want to smack it
. Jax has got a bit of a smexy shexy air about him, eh? Thanks!
Veron
September 19, 2009 at 4:40 pm