RP #004 - Breaking the Chains of Sanity [Word count 3968]
Jan 5, 2020 22:51:31 GMT -5
Quixote Della Torre, Flop, and 1 more like this
Post by James Nightingale on Jan 5, 2020 22:51:31 GMT -5
It all started with a chain, an arm wrapped in a chain delivering a vicious blow to the back of Malachi White’s head as he was vulnerable, rendering him unconscious on the floor. The first shot fired in James Nightingale’s campaign to eradicate weakness from Action Wrestling, seizing an opportunity to put the roster on notice by making a statement of intent. With both debuting that night Nightingale was successful in claiming his first victory whilst White was defeated, and whilst reeling from his loss was when he fell victim to Nightingale’s wrath. White eventually recovered from this attack and has taken a defiant stance against Nightingale’s mission by thwarting his campaign at every opportunity, even saving Thomas Snow from a similar fate to his own. They have stepped inside the ring twice, the first ending in a double count out, the second, a tag match with White and Snow gaining the victory against Nightingale and Felix Fortain however Nightingale was not involved in the decision. White has now laid down the challenge of a chain match, a match surely more suited to the violent and unstable Nightingale. This blood feud will end January 6th on the premiere edition of Monday Night Clash when The Angel of Death and The Midnight Son are attached wrist-to-wrist, one shall rise… one shall fall.
XXI: Black Christmas
Lying outside of the ring having been DDT’d through a table by White, Nightingale begins to regain his senses. He climbs to one knee and looks to the ring as the three count is made, White has just pinned Nightingale’s partner, Felix Fortain. His eyes lock intently on White as the rage builds from inside him, he climbs back to his feet never breaking his focus. He ponders storming the ring, but quickly evaluates that he is outnumbered and his opponents have the upper ground, he concedes that this battle has been lost but the war continues. He retreats up the ramp, looking into the ring one final time whilst shaking his head before slipping through the curtain.
Finally making his way to a secluded area in the arena Nightingales emotions consume him, sending him into a fit of rage. He starts to throw anything in his reach whilst shouting at himself.
YOU THINK THAT THIS OVER MALACHI! YOU THINK THAT YOU HAVE DEFEATED THE ANGEL OF DEATH? NO! NO! NOOO!
Nightingale is visibly agitated, pulling at his clothes, his hair, flipping tables and throwing anything not bolted down.
YOU HAVEN’T ENDED MY CAMPAIGN! YOU CANNOT END MY CAMPAIGN!
He catches sight of a mirror in the corner of his eye and he stops dead I his tracks, looking upon the agitated, insecure picture being reflected to him. He slowly walks over, his breathing heavy and laboured. Just when he begins to turn away he swiftly shifts motion and head butts the mirror, shattering it. When he raises his head and looks back into the mirror he bares witness to the crimson mass which has engulfed his face. Slowly his sadistic smile returns to his face as he regains his composure whilst deep in thought.
You may think you have scored a great victory tonight. The record books will state forever that on this night Thomas Snow and yourself did defeated us. But you know deep down that you didn’t beat me, not really. I clearly made an error in judgement by thinking Fortain was a worthy partner in achieving my goals and I was wrong. He was the weak link tonight, he was pinned one two three however I live to fight another day. And I swear when I get another opportunity to stand in the ring with you that it will be my hand raised in victory and my campaign will continue over Action Wrestling.
As he wipes the blood from his eyes his attention is drawn to the ground, amongst the shattered mirror and masses of blood lays Nightingale’s chain, having been knocked to the ground during his fit of rage. He pulls it out from the pile and lifts it to his face, mesmerised by it.
There you are. Where were you when I needed you tonight? I made the mistake of leaving you back here when we stormed the ring with steel chairs. I should have gone with my gut instinct and not been swayed by Fortain’s stupidity. The next time I face White you will help lead me to victory.
Nightingale places the chain around his neck and turns away, walking slowly into the darkness of the arena.
King City Hospital (Abandoned) – Present Day
It is a cold, wet December night in The King City. The wind is howling, lightning flashing throughout the sky followed by large cracks of thunder as we descend upon The King City Hospital, once an old yet prestigious hospital dating back to 18th century, now abandoned and in disarray, the old building striking a scary image befitting of a horror movie. However flickering light can be seen through a window at the top of old building.
Inside a pentagon, formed by many burning candles is found, and overlooking the pentagon, an old blood stained picture of Florence Nightingale, The Matriarch of modern nursing. James Nightingale steps into the room, wearing his trench coat and his mask, and has the chain draped around his neck. He surveys the room slowly before entering and walks around the pentagon approaching the picture of Florence. He slowly removes the chain from around his neck and lays it in front of the picture before retreating inside the pentagon, dropping down to one knee. He removes his mask and lays it on the ground, finally bowing his head.
Florence Nightingale, my matriarch, please guide me in my on going battle with Malachi White. Fill me with the darkness required to defeat The Midnight Son.
Silence fills the room, the candle lights dim. An elderly lady dressed in black appears from behind James, holding up a lamp. She slowly walks around the pentagon as James remains kneelt down, his head bowed.
James, my star apprentice, you have lost your way. Your mission was clear, eradicate Action Wrestling of the weakness that has festered away and reign supreme. You started strong, you won your first match, however you now have become side tracked with this rivalry with a far inferior talent then yourself.
I’m sorry I have disappointed you my Matriarch.
You should have eradicated Malachi White when you had the chance. Your chain was wrapped around his neck, you had the opportunity to eliminate him with the world looking but you let him slip from your grasp. You failed James, but fortunately for you Malachi has given you another opportunity.
She stops in front of James, turning to him face on, raising the lamp which begins to turn to a dark red flame.
James look into the lamp.
James raises his head slowly, tears running down his face, he looks visibly shaken. He looks into the lamp as his face turns to red due to the colour being omitted from the flame.
You are my Angel of Death, I chose you as my apprentice as I felt the darkness and rage that burned deep within you. You once thought that you could help people, you thought you had a gift for healing, for improving others’ lives. But secretly James, your darkness grew inside you, your hate, your anger it all lead you to where you are now. Now is time for you to embrace that inner strength and focus on your next opponent, Malachi White. He has underestimated you; he thinks he is the hero who will extinguish the dark flame. He thinks that he can end our campaign? He is a fool who is playing in our world. His stupidity has gifted you the perfect opportunity to finally eradicate him from Action Wrestling.
The Matriach picks up the chain from the ground and hands it to James.
James, I want you to hang Malachi White. I want you to hang him with the Action Wrestling audience as a witness. I want you to wrap this chain around his neck and throw him out the ring. Doing this will lead you to victory and will help progress our campaign. Eradicating The Midnight Son will send a strong message that we are not to be underestimated, that our cause has validity and that you fear no man or woman who may stand in your way, do you understand me?
Yes my Matriarch, I will carry out your command and I promise not to disappoint you again.
And remember James you know what effect a good hanging can have? Use that pain and go forth into the darkness my Angel of Death, finish the task, defeat Malachi White and make me proud.
James picks up his mask and returns to his feet. He places the mask back on his face with his eyes fixated on The Matriach.
As you command my Matriarch.
As he turns away his trench coat causes a rush of air which extinguishes the flames of the candles, plunging the room into darkness.
Had James actually communicated with a spiritual being or had he really lost his mind? The once promising young wrestler turned highly experienced nurse had truly fallen into darkness and must surely be taken as a genuine threat to anybody in Action Wrestling.
King City Hospital – 28th October 2013
Outside the King City Hospital on a cold October morning, a crestfallen Senior Charge Nurse James Harrison is sat on the ground with his back against a wall. His cheeks blemished as if he had been crying, a cigarette in his hand as he stares vacantly into the distance deep in thought. James had worked a twelve hour night shift, one which impacts his life for many years to come.
He continues to reflect on a patient he had helped care for the last seven years, a deeply troubled man called Robert Busby. Robert had been happily married with two children until one day he had come home to find his wife had murdered both their children then had committed suicide. This had understandably left Robert mentally broken and throughout the next seven years had been admitted to James’s unit multiple times with many botched suicide attempts. Throughout this period James had built up somewhat of a rapport with the troubled man, and at times had been the only one who could steer Robert in the right direction. They would spend many hours talking outside whilst smoking a few cigarettes. This time was different; Robert was more troubled then before, the suicide attempt had been a lot more serious and for that reason he was under a Section, meaning that he could not leave the unit for his own good and that a member of staff would have to be with him at all times. Despite this James continued to work tirelessly to help ensure Robert got the care he needed to ensure he could turn his life around. James thinks about their last conversation.
Robert is lying on his bed in the foetal position, sobbing. James is stood next to him. An overweight, lazy support worker, Peter is sat in the chair supposedly providing one-to-one supervision.
Robert you need to let me help you. I know for one second I cannot begin to imagine what you are going through because I can’t. No man or woman should ever experience your pain. But your kids, they wouldn’t want you to live your life this way. You need to live your life for them.
James I just cannot do this anymore. I close my eyes and I see their dead bodies. When I sleep I have nightmares of Caroline smothering them in their sleep. I’m just exhausted, I am weak, and I cannot do this anymore. And why the hell have they slapped this damn section on me! I can’t even go take a shit on my own.
James sits down next to Robert, putting an arm on his shoulder.
Robert you are not weak, I’ve seen many weak people here in all my years as a nurse and you are not one of them. I want to help you, please let me help you. The section is there to protect you, you are really vulnerable at the minute and we cannot risk you trying to hurt yourself again.
Robert sits up and finally looks at James.
You can help me by taking me for a smoke. But I have to take a piss first.
James stands up and walks to the door.
Sure thing Robert let me get my coat and fags its bloody cold out there tonight.
Peter , can you?
He signifies to Peter that he needs to go into the toilet with Robert.
A short time later James returns to the room with his coat to collect Robert when to his shock he walks in to find Peter still sat in the chair playing on his mobile phone with no sign of Robert.
Peter where the fuck is Robert?!?!
Peter looks up and points to the toilet door
.
He’s in the loo mate he has been in there a while probably taking a massive dump.
James drops his coat and quickly runs for the door.
You know damn well he isn’t supposed to be in there on his own.
He bangs on the door
.
Robert… Robert please open the door you know you’re not supposed to be in there alone.
No response. James heart beat begins to race, as if it is going to jump out of his chest.
Robert… Robert open up!
James tries to peer through the crack in the door, and what he sees sends a shock throughout his body. He can only see Roberts’s legs, as he is hung from the ceiling.
James jumps back from the door in a blind panic; his mind has gone blank in the horror witnessed. He snaps back into reality.
PETER RUN FOR HELP NOW!!
Peter leaps to his feet in only a way a big fat waste of space can, dropping his phone in the process and lumbering to the door. Within seconds the emergency alarm sounds. James grabs a fire extinguisher from the wall and starts bashing the door repeatedly trying to break the lock. His heart pounding, hoping he can break through in time to save Robert. The lock breaks and the door flings open, Robert has hung himself with a chain from the toilet, his face blue and mottled, eyes bulging. James drops the extinguisher and charges for Robert, lifting his legs as he gets to him to take the pressure away from his neck. The resuscitation team arrives, not sure what situation they are coming too.
James, already exhausted from holding up the dead weight of Robert yells.
Get me the ligature set now!!!
The ligature set is used to cut down hanging victims. A ladder is quickly located and Robert is cut down, causing both he and James to crash to the floor. James bangs his head on the way to the ground, this combined with being physically exhausted from holding Robert up for such a length of time has left him physically unable to perform CPR. He is led out of the room by a colleague exhausted and disorientated whilst the members of the resuscitation team work on Robert. Their attempt was however in vain because despite their best efforts, Robert was pronounced dead.
We return to James sat outside the hospital after his shift has finished reflecting on the horrors of the night before, smoking the last remnants of his cigarette. He stands to leave, takes one last drag and flicks his cigarette away when suddenly he hears a voice.
James… James it wasn’t your fault. He was weak and the weakness needs to be eradicated so the strong can reign supreme. Embrace the pain that you are feeling now and enter the darkness. You are my Angel of Death.
James stops and looks around, dazed and confused, his head still pounding from the blow sustained to his head and physically and mentally exhausted. He figures that he probably sustained a minor concussion. He exhales the last of the cigarette smoke and begins walking off into the cold autumn morning to go home to his own wife and two children, knowing that he would cuddle them tighter when he finally sees them after his experience that night with Robert.
King City Hospital (Abandoned) – Present Day
Nightingale is sat in the corner of the room where Robert hung himself, deep in thought. His sight firmly fixated on the ceiling where Robert hanged from. The chain passed to him by The Matriarch in his tightly clasped handed.
I sit here in this cold, room of death lost in my thoughts, recounting the cost of when my sanity started to slip away, allowing the darkness to askew my thought process and allowed The Angel of Death to consume me. I turn the pages of life in my head to reveal the inspiration I need to fight our cause, to eradicate the weakness from within Action Wrestling. A lot of my memories have slowly slipped away over time but I do not forget the pain, the hate, the anger. The noose of light has finally been cut, leaving me to move freely in the dark, to carry out The Matriarch’s bidding, as I stand face to face with the weakness that continues to hold this great promotion down. And the first obstacle standing in my way is Malachi White and he will not prevent me from succeeding in achieving our goals.
I embraced the darkness Malachi; I tried for so long to be the good guy, I was a promising up-and-coming wrestler, but gave that dream up to do the right thing by my family. I would have been a twenty year veteran by now, I would have made the big time, would have been a multi time world champion. But at the time I was weak; I left that all behind for a more stable life, I became a nurse. I thought I could save the world; I used to tell my kids that Daddy is a real life super hero as he saves people, kind of how you think you’re some kind of super hero now. But The Matriarch’s teachings have shown me that everything happens for a reason, you see if I hadn’t have left wrestling behind and become a real life super hero I would not have been exposed to the darkness which has brought me here today. I needed to leave it all behind to reach my full potential, and now I am ready. Now is my time Malachi, my time to show the world that I am the best in that ring. I no longer have a soul, I fight with no conscience therefore when I destroy you at Clash there will be no blood on my hands, no guilt over the sadness brought upon your family when their Midnight Son is left broken and empty, worthless and eradicated from Action Wrestling.
You are a fool Malachi in challenging me to a chain match… a chain match… are you fucking kidding me? You have seen how dangerous I am when I wield this chain. You remember yeah? Or did my chain wrapped Creeping Death cracking against your skull destroy too many of your brain cells to recall? In one brief second I left you lying on the floor, unconscious, twitching away in your own puddle of urine. And just think I did that to you in one second, what am I going to do to you when we are attached wrist to wrist? There is no escaping me, you cannot hope that a count out will save you this time and there isn’t anyone else you can pin, and it is just you and me in my idea of heaven and your idea of hell.
This chain can perform all kind of horrors to a human body, trust me I have bared witness to those horrors. I can whip you with this chain, tearing your flesh from its bones. I could place this chain in your mouth, and rip your jaw from your head, that sounds painful. How about I tie you up in the chain? You now so you cannot defend yourself? That sounds really intriguing. Then the Midnight Son won’t be able to defend himself, I could unleash all kinds of hell upon you then. But you know what I want to do to you; I am excited to do it. I think you know as you’ve already nearly fallen victim to it. I am going to take this chain and wrap it around your neck so that it clamps down on your throat, I am going to pull it really tight so that you can’t breathe, then I am going to throw your worthless carcass out of the ring but continue to hold the chain, leaving you hanging there until all of your super hero life has seeped away from your body and you go limp and cease to exist. Then I will have succeeded in eradicating this rather irritating road block from my campaign and then I can continue onto bigger and better things.
Malachi this was never personal; you were just there. I needed to make a statement to show the Action Wrestling universe that my cause needed to be taken seriously. I happened to stumble across you. It could have been anyone else it wouldn’t have mattered. When I opened that trainer’s door and saw you my eyes opened with excitement. I saw the weakness oozing from you as you were there cowering in pain following your loss to Felix Fortain and I knew then that it was the perfect moment to strike and I did. But you should have stayed down Malachi; your defiance is admirable but futile. You think you’re the hero to my villain? But who’s what role? Am I the bad guy? I have a purpose in life. I am undertaking The Matriarchs’’ work by eradicating the weak, ultimately leaving a higher standard product. You want to deny the world of this? You need to reflect on your purpose in life. However you’re too conflicted in your own thoughts, struggling to identify your place in this world. So you think if you can stand up against me you will make a name for yourself? Climb the Action Wrestling ladder, grab that brass ring? It’s not happening. The only grabbing you’re going to be doing is grabbing at your neck as I choke every last bit of oxygen out of your body. I am the hero in this world, I am saving everyone from the weakness that they have to witness week in week out and you are the villain standing in my way, obstructing me in achieving my goals.
Nightingale finally breaks his gaze and stands up finally walking into the bathroom where Robert took his own life, stopping directly under the spot where he hung from and looking up whilst playing with the chain.
Robert was weak and had to be eradicated, after many botched attempts he finally succeeded, he did something right for once. You both share many similarities, your weak minded and your time both end with a chain wrapped around your necks. Malachi I can promise you this, I will not botch my attempt at eradicating you. Enjoy life whilst you can, get your affairs in order, kiss your loved ones and hold them tight because you won’t be able to after Monday because The Angel of Death has come for you, pray for mercy.