GIN HEART BEAT VIDEO FROM FINAL FI

The only video in the project that I did 100% of the editing on, I think it shows. 

final fight draft

NOTES

Final fight----------

            Stray and Shiv waiting for Gin.

            Gin tries to talk them down. Shiv says fuck that and just shoots him. It goes wide (Stray noticed it would, as Shiv was trembling with anger.) and Shiv, all the more infuriated, charges. A small trading of blows between them. Stray makes his move, moving in and switches places with Shiv. Shiv backs off, cursing at his gun to charge faster. Gin and Stray trade blows. Gin is surprised by the fighting ability that Stray possesses, makes a note that he should not be this good. Stray assaults Gin with every trick in the book. Gin, caught off guard by the ability behind the assault, is hit a few times, but it doesnt affect him. It does, however, begin to activate his power. All the while, he is struggling not to hurt Stray. Gin grabs the cane, asks for it back. Stray refuses. Gin knocks him back. A shot comes out of nowhere, and Gin dodges barely. Shiv screams in anger, and Gin turns to face him. Shiv rushes in with a flurry of pistol whips, but Gin remains unfazed. He returns with a single punch, and pushes Shiv back. Shiv merely spits out some spit/blood, and returns for more. He assaults with punches and kicks this time, Gin continuing to block or avoid. Shiv lashes out at Gins face. Gin leans back to avoid, stray sweeps his legs. Shiv jumps on top of him and delivers a flurry of blows (punches and pistol whips) He ends by pointing the gun at Gin’s temple to fire. Gin flips him up and over. Shiv misses, screams. Stray leaps in the gap, defending Shiv. He pushes Gin back and away from Shiv, while Shiv recovers. Stray makes a long, telegraphed swing, Gin dodges and chops the back of Stray’s neck. Both are down.

Small talk.

They both get up. Flashy as hell here. Gin reaches for the gun. Stray hooks it and throws it back, spins, and hooks Gin’s leg. Shiv gets a free shot and makes contact. Gin’s adrenaline pumps harder, and Shiv comes at him with a swing. Gin kicks him up and grabs his legs, hammer-throwing him back and past Stray. He uses his speed to land on his feet. Stray, meanwhile, is baseball-bat swings at Gin and Gin goes to counter with an gut uppercut. Shiv, seeing the coming exchange fires a shot that hits Stray’s cane, accelerating the swing so it lands first, cracking good against Gin’s jaw. The blow sends him reeling. In that moment, Stray hooks Gin’s neck and swings around him, pulling him into a faceplant on the ground. Stray backs up and regroups with Shiv as Gin gets up. (Small talk?)

Shiv runs in for a punch. Gin slips underneath it, spins with a sweep. Shiv goes down and Gin spins into an axe kick, dislocating his shoulder. Gin backs off. Yells to try and get them to stop the fight. Stray helps Shiv up. Stray and Shiv rush Gin. Stray attacks, leans down, Shiv jumps off his back. Fakes out Gin, rolls past him, shoots him in the back.

Gin is now done trying to maim. Shiv rushes him with a punch. Gin avoids it, meanwhile, Stray slips behind him and hooks him. He hits him and spins him, leaving him face to face with the barrel of Shiv’s gun. Stray closes his eyes and sighs. Gin sweeps the gun to the side and uppercuts Shiv. In midair, he clotheslines him under the chin and throws him to the ground.

Gin turns to Stray, tearing up. Stray shows no reaction. This pisses off Gin, and Gin asks about it. Stray turns away. Gin goes to leave. Stray hooks the back of his shirt, pulling him back, and strikes him. Gin mutters something. Stray goes in for a wide swing. Arm bar into body punches and uppercut/hook.

“Can someone please tell me what’s going on right now?!” Gin asked utterly confused.

            “We’re kicking your ass; I thought that was obvious.” Shiv replied, regaining his balance.

            “Could’ve fooled me” Gin chuckled. “Seriously though, cut it out. I just need those fancy doodads you guys took from my place – they are mine, ya know?”

            “Finder’s keepers, dumbass. They’re ours now.” Shiv, gave Gin a cocky smile as he stood back up. Stray, a few feet away, also got back to his feet.

            “Listen, you guys know I have no problem with sharing my stuff – I’m probably crazy saying that to a couple of pick-pockets – but this time I’m going to have to insist. Those things are going to put you two in real danger, I can help though if you give them back. We can spar some other time, if you really want an ass-kicking that badly.” Gin smirked and then held his hand out sternly awaiting the return of his artifacts.

            “Real danger, huh? Like you can talk about putting us in danger!”

            “Hey! If you didn’t want to get hurt, you shouldn’t have stepped to this! Mess with the bull, you get the horns sonny-boy.” Gin flexed and laughed as he taunted a clearly livid Shiv.

            “Enough with the cocky talk Gin-“

            Shiv groaned. “Fuck this.” He levelled his pistol at Gin, interrupted Stray entirely, and shot.

            “Whoa!” Gin side-stepped the blast of energy that came rushing out of Shiv’s gun. “Seriously?! You could’ve actually hurt me there man! Enough is enough, this isn’t a game. Just, please, give me the gun.” Gin lunged forward and reached his right hand out to grab the barrel of Shiv’s pistol.

            Stray quickly whipped the crook of the cane forward, wrapping around the pistol. In one smooth motion, he threw the pistol up and over Gin’s right shoulder. Shiv, using his newfound supernatural speed, made it below the gun before it reached the ground. As Gin turned to face him, Shiv let a blast fly, striking Gin square in the back.

            Gin let out a loud grunt as the massive ball of energy made contact with his back and threw him face first onto the ground. The burn was intense, not quite as bad as a burn from Aidan but it carried a similar sting. It was enough pain to kick Gin’s adrenal glands into action. His pulse began to pound and he started to breathe heavily. Shiv zoomed in attempting to land a pistol whip before Gin could get back to his feet, however, Gin’s lit up senses caught the threat with enough time to throw a kick straight at Shiv’s chest. The inertia from his speed, coupled with the force of Gin’s kick, caused Shiv to fly backwards. As he was falling Gin grabbed for his legs and used his momentum to hammer-throw Shiv high into the air. He used his speed to adjust himself on his descent and landed on his feet a few yards behind stray.

            Stray hopped in the gap, between Shiv and Gin. He spun as he moved forward, gathering force to use in a large baseball swing. As swung, Gin slipped in and readied an uppercut. As they both struck at each other, Shiv saw a chance, and shot a blast behind Stray. The blast hit the cane behind the swing, propelling the swing forward with an obscene amount of force into Gin’s jaw. There was an audible crack. Gin stumbled back, reeling from the force of the contact.

            As Gin was off-balance, Stray hooked the crook of the cane around Gin’s neck. He slipped around him, and pulled the cane hard to the ground, dragging Gin’s face into the dirt. Stray hopped back to his feet, and scuttled back to where Shiv stood, with his pistol still levelled at Gin on the ground.

            At this point, Gin’s fight or flight response was beginning to take hold of his body. Every motion was in service of his protection. If they keep coming at me like this, I won’t be able to stay in control. I need to keep them safe; I have to stop to this - now. He was still breathing heavily and his body temperature was rapidly rising. He reached his hand up to his mouth and snapped his jaw-line back into place; yet again letting out an audible crack – his adrenaline allowing him to shrug off the pain. He stared down the barrel of Shiv’s pistol as he came to his senses. Gin felt a chill down his spine. The look of absolute fury that was telegraphed on Shiv’s face was scary, even to a monster like Gin. Gin recognized that look all too well. He felt it inside, every time he looked at Aidan.

“I-“ Gin opened his mouth to speak, but was interrupted by Shiv’s fist. Gin slipped under Shiv’s punch and quickly swept his back leg around, knocking the speedster off his feet. Gin looked down at Shiv on the ground. Gin quickly raised his front leg high into the air and slammed it down on the Shiv’s shoulder. His bones snapped loudly as his shoulder dislocated from his socket and Shiv let out a blood-curdling scream. Gin jumped back and watched as Shiv was writhing on the ground. He would take any chance he could get to try and make sense of this madness. That look on his face…he really wants me dead. Was Aidan right? “This is pointless! No one needs to get hurt anymore! Just hand over the artifacts!” Gin screamed in between his heavy breathes in a desperate plea to reach Stray and Shiv. Though his cries would go unheeded, they were too far gone.

Stray ran to help Shiv up. The two were unfazed by Gin’s pleas – in fact, the fury plastered on Shiv’s face was more fearsome than ever. Gin could see Shiv mouth something to Stray, and the latter nod. Shiv raised his gun from just behind Stray. The momentary flinch it baited was enough for the sudden movement forward from Stray dashing at him to catch him slightly off-guard. He set himself again as Stray closed in. The simple swipe straight down with the cane was easy enough to avoid. Stray’s follow-through seemed overdrawn, so Gin readied a punch.

As he drew back, Shiv stepped up behind Stray. He planted a foot strongly on Stray’s back, and leapt off it. He took aim at Gin’s face, but when Gin moved to avoid the coming shot, he pulled his arm back in a feint, and somersaulted past Gin. As Shiv left his field of view, Stray began to stand, and readied a swing. As Gin prepared to intercept it, an intense pain flared over his back, with a searing sensation.

Gin screamed in agony. It was the first time anyone other than the origins had caused him such immense pain in a single fight. His heart was pounding heavily – faster than it ever had before. He could feel the adrenaline coursing through his veins, urging him to get up and react. His body temperature rose rapidly as the profuse sweat that was dripping down his body began to evaporate into steam. He had the aspect of a hulking monster in an adrenaline fueled rage. He could barely control his actions, all he could do was watch as his body reacted.

Shiv flew in yet again letting out a furious howl. He could barely direct his punch as he was distorted by the immense steam cloud emanating from Gin’s body. Gin instinctively dodged. His movements were now much less rigid than before; he appeared animalistic and unbalanced as he flowed through his motions. Stray took advantage of Gin’s unbalanced state. He readied the crook of his cane at the exact point where Gin’s neck would land after his dodge. Stray used the momentum to spin Gin around bringing him face to face with the barrel of Shiv’s gun.

Time seemed to halt for Stray. He let out a deep sigh and closed his eyes. Gin’s left hand whipped up and quickly swept the gun away from his face as his right hand forced an uppercut into Shiv’s torso. As Shiv flew into the air Gin lunged forward with a tremendous force keeping his right arm steady as he slammed it deep into Shiv’s windpipe. Shiv’s windpipe was completely crushed under the force of Gin’s arm which threw him to the ground so hard that his lower body bounced back up.

Gin could felt it as his arm tore into Shiv’s windpipe. His breathe became trepidacious as his mind caught up to his body. He stuttered, trying to slow down his heavy breathing. “Shiv…?” Gin called to the body lying behind him on the ground. “Shiv?” He walked closer to Shiv’s body, staring down at him. Gin’s brain could comprehend it, but his mind refused to believe. He knew what he had just done – as he had done it to so many others before. Why would Shiv have been any different? Gin bent down and slowly grabbed Shiv’s gun. As he rose up, his eyes met with Stray.

Stray was completely devoid of emotion. His eyes were fixed on the ground. He seemed like a child who had just passed blame on their sibling; feeling as though he had done wrong, but unable to understand why. He looked completely lost. He didn’t even try to calculate this situation – he didn’t even want to consider what had just happened. But he and Gin - they both knew, Shiv was gone.

Gin stepped towards Stray, tightly clenching Shiv’s gun in his hand. He wanted so badly to ask Stray “why?” but he felt he wouldn’t get a straight answer. Instead, he started to feel and insatiable rage. When he looked at Stray, he saw not a single tear on his face. No sense of remorse, grief, no sadness at all. When Gin looked at Stray all he saw was…nothing. Nothing, how could Stray feel nothing? His brother had just died before his very eyes and didn’t seem to affect him in the slightest. Even Gin had a tear or two stream down his face only to be evaporated by the steam. “Hey.” Gin called to Stray. “You just…don’t care? You’re just going to stand there?” Stray didn’t answer. He didn’t move at all, he just continued to stare at the ground. This made Gin furious. “He was – was always there, running right by your side. The two of you would face anything together no matter the odds. How can you not care?! Your entire life was based on your dependency on this person and now he’s just gone…You must feel something!

Gin had no time to breathe as his eyes met with the barrel of Shiv’s gun. His heart was still racing and the adrenaline allowed him a moment of clarity before his instincts took over. Just what the hell is going on here? How did things spiral into this hell before me? I thought I could change but, maybe my body is telling me to just stick to what I know…            

how artifacts work

possibly forces out humanity that’s up to Geoff

lower level demons imbue real world items with their energy

to make a pact with a demon the demon has to reveal their name gives human some power over them

making a pact will yield more power on both ends

weaker demons avoid pacts by creating artifacts because demons cannot fully cross to the human side they use human collaborators through artifacts or pacts to meet their goals

when you get ahold of the artifact demon energy rushes into you and develops your power but your human body doesn’t know how to make full use of it and so some energy doesn’t get used slowly builds up inside you if you have enough energy to sustain your existence when you die then you will live on as a demon such as stray and shivs case 

Production Log

When I started thinking about this project I was not sure if there was anyway for me to bring together a product that really embodied what it was that I wanted to experiment with and learn about. I knew that I wanted to primarily work with story, but taking suggestions from my professor, I thought about working with video. Video was a field that I worked with and loved earlier in my college career but, for some reason, never had much chance to come back to. My professor suggested that this project would be the gateway through which I could experiment with the IMM fields that I am passionate about. That being said, I decided that I really wanted text, video, and some 3D elements in my project. Now the challenge was to figure out how these things could possibly come together. Obviously, the primary portion of the project would be story. As aspiring writers, my writing partner and I really wanted to take advantage of this project to show off what we can do and focus on crafting this skill. So we would definitely be writing a story and the scope would be that of a short novel. Now to bring in the video portion.

Originally, I was positive that I wanted to either focus on making 3D characters and environments for short, 3D animated flavor scenes throughout the story but I soon realized that I had neither the time nor the skill to do this. Then I wondered if I could use live action film and add 3D costumes and weapons to my actors. This ambitious idea was also put down when I realized how difficult it would be to accomplish. Our next attempt was to use a web-based interface for the entire project. We were going to have the home page laid out like a crime scene and you would click new items from the story as they were placed in the room to bring up the narrative. Each section would have a video at the beginning or the end. We realized in time that this was a haphazard and very impractical way of putting together our project. Eventually, my professor showed me a TED talk in which images were projected onto a physical book on stage. This gave me the idea to add live action film into a physical book with augmented reality.

Now it was time to refine our story. My partner and I had worked together to make an interactive story-telling project the year before. We knew how to craft a story together, although our previous attempt was much more rushed and less professional. We began with a few story ideas that we had left over from our old project. Some included medieval knights possessed by fire demons on a quest for revenge. We had another about a monarch's son and his friend - an assassin who was contracted by a secret order to take out the other character's father. Our biggest concern with crafting this story was avoiding cliches as much as we could. We found that a lot of our initial ideas for stories often sounded like something we had heard recently or would lead into a very common story trope. With this in mind, we tried to craft the climax of our story into something that no one would have ever seen coming and this would hopefully serve to really push the main theme across. Theme was another very important story point. I personally really wanted to focus on a universal thought that can be taken away from understanding the character development throughout the story. I wanted my story to stick with the reader in a way that made them think differently about certain situations in their life.

The main template from the story was eventually taken from an old idea that my partner had. Two orphans - brother and sister - who were living on the street, come into contact with a street gang that uses heavily exaggerated and fantastical alchemy. We thought about how we could develop the characters in this story while also fairly splitting up the writing and found that some changes had to be made. Soon our brother and sister duo became brothers who were much older than originally intended. They were not actually related but found family in eachother through their years spent together in an orphanage. We kept the street gang but evolved them into a full-on, world-wide crime syndicate and introduced a third character who works for this gang but also befriends the two orphans.

Engine Background work in progress

                “This won’t kill you Engine. Dammit! Open your eyes! Keep your head up, don’t you even dare to pass out!”

Am I going to die here….so much blood. It’s  cold…can’t keep my eyes open.

“Sir, he’s letting go, we need to back off!”

“No! Keep firing! The boy lives or dies with this exercise. If he does not stand than I expect nothing less than a bullet-riddled corpse against the courtyard wall.”

“Aaaah!” A blood-curdling shriek and utter blackness as Gin awoke in a cold and profuse sweat. He clenched his eyes tightly as he waited for his muscles to contract and relax. His body was automatically set on high alert. It’s the kind of reaction one would expect from someone standing before a firing squad - especially when he was both physically and mentally recalling the full complement of a 30 caliber machine gun rending their flesh over and over. He was panting heavily and looking around his dark room for something to comfort him. He reached down beside his bed to grab a bottle of water which he proceeded to sip from, only to let the majority of the bottle trickle down his nick in an attempt to cool himself off. “Heh, I guess the past is going to haunt me forever. But I can’t be held back forever. One day my prison will shatter. I will earn the right to my life. Until that day comes, I will never give in to despair…I suppose that’s just who I am. The so-called ‘Little Engine that Could,’ I just won’t ever quit.” He laid back down and tried to get back to sleep hoping that tonight he could avoid the nightmares that he couldn’t seem to escape; unfortunately, this night not would not spare Gin from his grief or show him any remorse.

            “Come on in! It’s time for dinner!” Gin could hear the soothing sound of his mother’s voice. When he turned around, he could see his old family home in the distance. A gorgeous old mansion on the outskirts of the city, it sat high up on a hill overlooking a suburban housing settlement.

            “Comin’ ma!” A ten year old, bright-eyed Gin called back to his mother and began sprinting his way back through the dense forest that made up his massive backyard. Well at least it would seem that way to a ten year old. It was a massive property and he had gotten lost out there more than a few times when he was younger. As he approached the back door and the embrace of his mother’s arms, his breath began to constrict. His full sprint devolved into a lumbering stagger and instead of breathing he was gasping for breath.

            “I told you to pace yourself sweetie, here.” Gin’s mother ran out to catch him before he hyperventilated and fell to the ground. She shook up his inhaler, forced it into his mouth and pressed down on the top to administer his asthma medicine. This process was all too common for Gin who, knowing full well about his heart condition, would still insist upon running around with the other children in an attempt to keep up with them. He actually never remained “it” for long when playing tag. He would let out a full burst of speed and generally catch the very same person who tagged him…but he would be out of the game for good after that.

            “Elena? You ready yet? We’re dying of starvation over here hon.” Gin’s father called out with a playful tone.

            “The food’s ready, I was just busy making sure our son doesn’t die.”

            “...Alright well don’t let the steak get cold.”

            “We’re having steak tonight?!” Gin immediately perked up with a bit of a cough and ran out of his mother’s arms and over towards the dining room.

            “Whoa, whoa son. Slow down, we’re all hungry and the food isn’t going anywhere. Geez your mom just treated one asthma attack, you looking for another one so soon?” Gin’s father George grabbed him as he ran past. “You remember my boss Mr. Aidan, right son? Go on and say hi.” Gin turned around to see the massive man who was talking with his father. He was very tan and had long, dark hair with a chin strap that ended in a goatee. He was clearly older than George – though he was very obviously clinging onto what youth he had left. His eyes stared softly, but there was something ostensibly devilish about his smile.

            “Well I’d be awfully upset to hear that you’ve forgotten about me son.” Mr. Aidan stood up out of his seat and looked down at Gin with a gesture of playful disappointment.

            “Hell-o…” Gin’s eyes met with Aidan’s and he felt a chill rush down his spine. He quickly looked away – refusing to make eye contact again. Aidan seemed very overbearing to Gin. He felt a yearning for comfort. He thought about clinging to his father’s leg as any other child would when faced with a somewhat scary stranger.  Though Gin had never been one to fear an unfamiliar face – he had always been quite friendly and maybe a little overly talkative in fact. A 10 year old Gin would not be able to figure it out – a 30 year old Gin, would most likely be puzzled as well. There was something about Aidan’s presence that made Gin feel as though he was unwelcome in his own home. Even his playful attempt at sarcastic disappointment felt more like genuine malice.

            “Haha. What’s the matter? I was only joking. I couldn’t expect you to remember me from so far back. The last time I saw you, you were still in diapers.” Gin could felt a small heft in his chest as Aidan spoke. This feeling of fear was so foreign to him that he could only wear a face of confusion. He stood there staring around the area where Aidan was standing trying as hard as he could not to make eye contact again.

            “Yeah you can’t really expect him to remember something from two weeks ago. He’s not the brightest kid.” George joked and nudged his son on the arm.

            “Hey!” Just like that Gin snapped out of his little funk, turning his attention toward his father. “Shut up dad!” He leaped onto his father’s back and started pounding away with his little fists using his legs to clamp on. George chuckled as he took a beating from his son. He only pretended to fight back as he could tell Gin was still out of breath from his asthma attack earlier. Only Gin himself could tell that his shortness of breath was somehow caused by Aidan, but he continued to pound away at his father hoping to beat back his fears.

            “Don’t break your father. He’s my top man. I need him in good shape.” Aidan chuckled. Gin’s punches got fiercer as he heard Aidan’s voice.

            “Ow! Seriously son, listen to him. You’re going to put my back out.”

            “Honestly George can’t you go five minutes without provoking him? He just had an attack, he needs to rest.” Gin’s mother Elena walked into the room from the kitchen. “Anyway, you have to stop fighting now because the steaks are ready. You don’t want them to get cold do you?” All at once Gin and his father held perfectly still for a split second before the both cried out in unison “Steak!” George Grabbed his son under his arm and rushed them both into the kitchen.

            Gin sat down and started shoveling his food into his mouth. As odd as it sounds, he always loved steak from the point that he was old enough to try it. He tore through the tender meat as fast as he could, hoping to finish and get away from the table where that odd man sat across from him. He never looked up from his plate and when he finished eating he rushed off to his room. “Don’t forget to come back and help me with the dishes!” His mother called to him as he ran off. Though they were wealthy, Gin’s family was very headstrong and often insisted on doing things themselves – which is why there were no servants in their massive mansion of a home.

The adults took their time savoring their much larger portions. When they finished it had been quite some time since Gin had rushed off. George and Aidan retired to the den to discuss professional matters while Gin and his mother cleaned the dishes.

“Mom?” Gin turned to talk to his mother.

“Yeah hon?”

“Who is that man?”

“Mr. Aidan is your father’s boss honey. Didn’t he tell you?”

“I think so. But why is he here?”

“Well your father has been good friends with Mr. Aidan for a long time but now he doesn’t want to work for him anymore. So he wanted to invite Mr. Aidan to a nice meal before giving the bad news.”

“Why doesn’t dad want to work for him anymore?”

“He loves you so much that he wants to be able to spend more time with you.”

“Hmm. What does dad do mom?” It was the first time that Gin had ever wondered what it was that kept his father so busy and away from home all the time. He always felt that when his father could be around he had always done more than enough to make time for him.

“Well you know your dad is really good at getting people to do things they don’t always want to do. It’s called persuasion.”

“Huh?” The young Gin was puzzled, he wasn’t the brightest boy.

“Well, he convinced you that you should do your homework without much trouble didn’t he?”

“Yeah. I guess so.”

“He also got me to make steak for the third night in a row…” Elena said with a troubled look on her face. “Anyway, your dad persuades people to give their resources to Mr. Aidan’s company, and no one does it better than him…or so he says.” She muttered beneath her breath.

“So dad’s going to be home more now?” Gin was excited at the thought of having his dad around more often as he was almost always out of the house working.

“That’s right son.” His mother smiled at him as she handed another rinsed off dish to her son who placed it in the dishwasher. He smiled back at his mother excited to have his dad around more often. “Let’s hope Mr. Aidan doesn’t get too upset with your dad.” At the mention of his name, Gin thought about Aidan’s presence and he lost his breath for a moment.

“Mom? I-is Mr. Aidan mad at me?”

“Of course not.” Elena chuckled. She looked over to see a thousand yard stare on her young son’s face and realized the seriousness of his inquiry. “Why would you think that?” she asked with a motherly concern. Gin didn’t answer, he was lost in thought. His mother bent down and hugged him tightly. “Honey, if Mr. Aidan is mad at anyone, it’s your father. You have nothing to worry about...though his face is kind of scary huh?” They both shared a laugh – though Gin’s was more of a nervous chuckle – and after a peck on the forehead from his mother, Gin ran back up to his room.

“I’m done Flame. It’s time I get what I want and what I want, is to spend time with my family.” Gin’s father sternly protested. Seldom had he been heard with such a serious tone of voice.

“You’re done, when I say you’re done. I think you forget who it was that brought you up. You would have nothing without me. I did for you what no one else ever would. Your debt has yet to be repaid.” Aidan retorted.

That night Gin lied awake in his bed. The young boy was confused by the commotion he faintly overheard between his father and his so called ‘boss.’       

                     “I have done everything you have asked of me. Not a single expectation went unmet. Kronos is well established now and you have more resources than you could ever need. What more could you possibly ask of me Flame?”

            “You so easily forget your position George? I suppose arrogance has always been your biggest vice. Don’t think you won’t be punished for your hubris. The origins don’t like their lap dogs to have self-awareness.”

            “Enough Flame – Aidan…This is not the life I want for my family. My time is short and I won’t let you scare me into submission anymore. I will go to Etruscion myself if I must.”

            “Fine. Attempt to stand before Etruscion without the power of Kronos behind you. I’d be interested to see how you fare.” With that, Aidan bowed out in silence. He left with a look of pious disappointment on his face. You could almost hear him saying “you’ll regret this George, please don’t make an enemy of me,” but Aidan was never one to appear weak. None of this came through to Gin clearly. He could only faintly recall some of the odd names they mentioned echoing through the halls of his massive home. He had fallen asleep before the conversation had ended, and after that night, Aidan was neither seen nor spoken of in Gin’s home.

The next three years went by in the blink of any eye. Gin’s eleventh birthday was the first one his father was able to be around for in the last five years. It warmed his heart well to have his best friend home all the time and ready to play. Though Gin was always very gregarious, the difficulty he had in keeping up with the other children – caused by his heart condition – left him with only a handful of close friends through his adolescence. Even when he would insist he could keep going, he would do so through spells of dry heaves and wheezing which his mother could not stand to bare. So the boy turned to his father, his hero, for friendship. For as long as he could, George made sure that Gin would head out into the yard with him every day. They would play tag or wrestle – really any type of activity that would help to strengthen Gin’s breathing little by little. After all, Gin did get his heart condition from his father in the first place, who better to know how to fight back against it? Gin and his parents spent every day together through his youth and when he finally did make more friends, he still yearned for quality time with his parents and he would choose them over his friends more often than not. That twelve year old boy could not possibly have ever been happier…nor would he have the chance to be.

“It was all a lie.” Gin thought to himself. “The comfort of love and happiness lulled me into a false sense of security so I could be dragged down further. My world began to unravel in one night of terror.” By the time Gin turned thirteen, his father’s condition had worsened. They did not have the chance to play together like they used to. George spent the majority of his time in bed which was very uncharacteristic of a man his age. Gin and Elena did all they could to help get him back on his feet.

            “Come on dad, you have to get up. We should totally go for a run, it’s a great day outside. I bet I can finally beat you up that huge hill on Parnell. What do ya say? Winner gets to do my homework for me. Eh? Sound tantalizing dad.” Gin joked to get his father’s spirits up.

            “Wow son that sounds really tempting. It’s so exciting I think my heart may finally just give out if I think about it anymore.” George replied.

            “Hey!” Elena punched George on the shoulder. “Don’t even joke about that. And, hey!” She then proceeded to punch Gin on the shoulder.

            “Ow! What?!”

            “You better get that homework done before you go anywhere.” She scolded in an oddly motherly fashion.

            “Fine, I’ll do it right now…if dad gets up and goes for a run with me. Come on dad let’s go.” Gin grabbed his father by the arm and attempted to drag him out of bed. “Come on pops, we’ve got to put some more mileage on you before we can trade you in.” Gin was insistent on getting his father to better himself. After all, George had done the same for his son; and although Gin would never say it out loud – for fear of hurting his father’s feelings – but seeing his hero defeated by the same condition George had once helped Gin to conquer, was killing him inside. He couldn’t stand by and watch his father rot from the inside out.

            “I’m sorry son….” George gasped for breath. “I just can’t today. Why don’t you ask one of your friends to go with you.”

            “Fine, I’ll give you a pass today.” Gin replied. “But you have to promise to come with me tomorrow.” In truth, Gin wished taking his friends would have been the same, but it never was. Only when he ran with his father did he feel like he was accomplishing something. Everyday the two of them would get just a little bit further together before they would both start wheezing. They would have humorous bets to see who would go into shock first, needless to say…they both needed a ride home rather often. But now, they almost never ran together. So rarely did George find the strength to even climb the massive flight of stairs in their estate.

            That night after dinner, Gin came home alone. His run was so underwhelming that he wasn’t breathing heavily in the slightest. Gin walked into the kitchen hoping to grab a drink – and maybe pick at some leftovers. “Alright, mom packed up some leftovers for lunch tomorrow. Crap, can I eat them now? If I do I won’t have them for tomorrow!” He clasped his hands against his head and ran his fingers through his hair as he wracked his brain for a solution to his current predicament. “Ah! I want ‘em so ba-“ Just then, Gin heard the sound of shattering glass followed by a muffled scream. “Mom!?” Gin called out. “You okay ma?! You need me?!”  Gin peered down the darkened hallway connecting their kitchen to the living room.

            “Don’t come any closer kid or I blow her face off!”  It was late at night at the lights were off in the house so Gin could not see clearly. All he could make out were two black silhouettes standing in the living room. Behind them he could see a small hole where some moonlight came in through a broken window. The light from the moon revealed the bottom of Elena’s dress. Gin could see the heel of his mother’s shoe which was closed in by what looked like a black combat boot. He heard grunts and groans that sounded a lot like his mother and right by the source of the sound he could see a slight silver glint from the light of the moon. Gin didn’t want to process what was going on. He had a feeling that once the situation was accepted, it was the truthful reality. There was no denying it though, his mother was being held hostage with a gun to hear head.

            “Mom!” Gin called out from the darkness. “My…mom. What’s going to happen to my mom? I need to run, I need to get dad, I need to get anyone that can help.” It was all Gin could think about. He knew his only choices now where to try to escape to the darkness, or calmly listen to what this intruder had to say, which is why his next move came as much of a surprise to him as anyone else. “You better fucking let go of my mom!” His eyes were wide and his stance strong. “Why did I say that?! I need dad. What can I do on my own? He has a gun, he could kill her.” He couldn’t believe what he had just done but something inside him would not allow him to sit still.

            “You better watch your mouth you little shit! I could end her life any second if I wanted to.”

            “Don’t say that about my mom!” Gin’s heat was beating wildly. He was a frail thirteen year old boy with a heart condition staring down the darkened silhouette of an armed stranger who was holding in his hands the fate of that which Gin held most dear. Gin knew he was completely powerless in this situation, but he didn’t care. The end of that hallway could have held countless demons from a far off dimension but as long as they were threatening the life of Gin’s loved one, they would be no more frightening than a litter of puppies.

            “Honey, you’ve got to calm down.” Elena struggled to speak through her captor’s bonds. “Ngh. I’ll be okay. Just do what he says and I promise you we will be oka-!” The captor jerked Elena’s body towards him and tightened his grip.

            “Shut the hell up. Both of you!” Elena’s captor screamed as he tightened his grip yet again and placed the barrel of his gun firmly into her temple.

            “Agh!” Elena called out in pain.

            “Ngh! Leave her alone! I’ll fucking kill you!” Gin was seething. His heart was racing so fast he was beginning to wheeze.

            “That’s it kid.” The captor kicked Elena in the shin to break her stance.

            “Agh!” Elena cried out yet again as the her captor’s boot dug into her leg leaving her shin severely wounded. 

            “Lady, I’ve had just about enough of that smart-mouthed brat of a son you’ve got there.” He raised his gun towards Gin and pointed it firmly at his forehead while adjusting his stance to support Elena whose was struggling to stand with her wounded leg. “If your kid continues to behave like an animal, then I’m going to have to put him down.” Elena, whose torso was now titled toward the ground, supported by nothing but her good leg and the arm of her captor which she was hanging from, jerked her head upward. She saw the horror of a gun being pointed at her child and went into a berserk rage just as Gin had.

            She let out a loud yelp and threw her head into her captor’s torso. She then sunk the heel of the shoe on her good foot into one of his shins, just as he had done to her, and summoned all of her strength to push his gun aside and skew his aim.

            “Mom!” Gin cried out and started sprinting towards the two as soon as the gun barrel lost its target.

            “Ngh! You bitch!” The captor screamed as his shin was assaulted. He pushed Elena’s face away from his torso and let the rest of her body drop to the ground as he readjusted his aim. He pointed his gun down toward Elena as Gin flew in to tackle him. A loud bang went off, followed immediately by a thud as two more bodies and a hand gun hit the ground hard.

            “Agh! Hah hah! You bastard! Hah hah!” Gin was sitting on top of his mother’s assailant radically throwing punches and panting. His heart was pounding harder than it ever had before and tears were streaming profusely down his face. He got in a few good blows before the assailant sat up and knocked the small thirteen year-old in the face so hard that he flew back towards his mother’s body. Gin could not even bare to look to confirm if she was okay. He knew that if anything else had happened to her, he would fly into such a blind rage that the resulting stress response would send him into anaphylactic shock and he would be completely helpless to aid or – less preferably – avenge his mother. Gin had to perish the thought and focus on the task at hand. He stood back up and wiped the blood from his face. He was ready to dive right back in and fight until his little body could not hold up anymore.

            “I’m going to love beating some sense into you kid.” The assailant rose and walked toward the helpless young teen. The look on Gin’s face would terrifying, he truly had the eyes of a killer. He looked right through the man before him and saw him as nothing but sentient trash that needed to be burned. As the assailant got closer Gin brought up his leg for a kick hoping that his legs would do significantly more damage than his arms – he most likely would have been right if his kick had landed, but the assailant grabbed Gin’s leg and drew him in closer. Gin immediately took four right hooks to the face that knocked his head back with every impact. On the fourth punch he hit the ground hard and shut his eyes. “Now stay down kid, I’ve got a job to finish.”

            “You get back here you pile of crap.” Gin refused to let his attacker slink off. He grabbed the assailant’s leg and started punching it. He hadn’t landed three punches before he felt the tip of a combat boot in his temple.

            “It’s only going to get worse for you if you don’t stay down kid.” The assailant continued forward to pick up his gun.

            “Agh!” Gin cried out and kicked the unsuspecting assailant while his back was turned.

            “That is it kid! I told you to stay down, now I’m going to have to put you down.” When the assailant got back up on his feet, he turned toward Gin and cocked his hand gun aiming it once again at Gin’s forehead. Gin stared deeply into the familiar gun barrel once more. His heart was pounding in his chest. He was in an excruciating amount of pain and he was bleeding profusely.

            “Did I kill my mother?” Staring death in the face, all Gin could wonder about was his mother. “Is she okay? Was it my fault? What else could I do for her?” Gin was so fixated on the choices he had made. “He hurt my mom. I had to protect her. I needed to hit him and so, that’s what I did.” He felt somewhat contented by that thought. Instead of being dominated by what would scare off any other person, Gin focused on attempting to resolve the situation in the way he most saw fit. He took a deep breath and exhaled heavily while trying to calm his heart rate. He heard the sound of the gun cock and contemplated rushing forward in a last desperate attempt but before he could take a step…The loud bang of a gun went off.

            “Check on your mother!” It was George slinking down the stairs, gripping the railing in one hand, and a hand gun in the other. The assailant went down and his blood began to drench the carpet. Gin’s tears only stopped for an instant as he immediately turned around to check on his mother. As it turned out, Gin was able to spare her the bullet, but it may have been a less cruel fate than what she had actually suffered through. The various severe instances of blunt force trauma she received to the head that night caused an aneurism which killed her. Gin bent down over his mother’s corpse and held her tightly as he cried. His father, despite his dangerously high heart rate, rushed down the steps to console his son. The family sat there for hours without saying a word.

            They were so deep in mourning, they never would have noticed, the man that they though had been shot dead had completely disappeared. He crept off into the darkness when Gin and his father were distracted. Outside the estate, the assailant regained his composure. He plucked the bullet wound from his chest, it was just above his heart. He held his hand up to the fleshy wound, closed his eyes, and took a deep breath in through the nostrils. The muscles in his chest tightened and began to glow as the wound started to heal itself. He then pulled a phone out of his pocket. “Is it done?” A deep voice asked from the other side of the phone.

            “I think I got the woman, but that kid is a different story. He freaked out and attacked me! What kind of a kid tackles an armed gunman? And then, we got into a fist fight and I pummeled him real good – even used my scion powers at one point, but the kid would not stay down. It was the craziest thing.”

            “Failure is unacceptable scion.”

            “I know bu-“ The assailant tried to argue but he was cut off.

            “Do not back talk scion, return to the tower immediately.”

            “…Y-yes sir Lord Flame.”

            Gin awoke from that night the same way he had for the entirety of his teenage years. He was covered in tears, sobbing into his hands, unable to get up and start the day. “What is wrong with me?” He wondered aloud. “Why couldn’t I save her? That man was armed, what was I thinking?” He clenched his forehead hard with one hand and streaked his fingers through his hair. “Dammit!” He punched into his wall in blind frustration. Most of his nights went about like this. He would unintentionally reflect on the darkness of his youth and the terrible fate that had been thrust upon him. “Well, maybe a run will cheer me up.” He said taking a deep breath. So he started to run, and he ran hard. He must have gone for hours – heading to the very limits of the city, he didn’t even feel tired. When he finally reached his destination, he looked up to see his old family estate. It was at that second that Gin’s exhaustion caught up with him. His heart had been racing at an unnatural pace just as he knew it would, but he couldn’t control the loss of breath he felt by stepping back into his home. This place, it was the source of so much happiness and at the same time, so much grief.

            “Hello Engine.” From inside the house, a deep and familiar voice echoed forth.

            “…What are you doing here? Can’t you leave me alone?”

            “Oh come now son, I could ask you the same thing. This Estate is technically mine now, I’m sure you remember signing it over to me when I offered to help treat your father.” The man replied in a haughty tone. Hearing this angered Gin. The fact that anyone would ever bring up his parents in such a way is something that Gin could never forgive. “Oh did I upset you? Didn’t mean to be insensitive Engine, I just thought you had grown from the weak and foolish child you once were, are you telling me my training was ineffective?”

            “I haven’t tried to attack you have I?” Gin replied. In any other circumstance, Gin probably would have lunged out by now. The man before him, however, was one of few that Gin could never even dream of attacking. “Are you going to tell me what you want…Aidan?”

            “Oh, I see you still have a spark of insolence don’t you Engine.” The man before Gin was in fact, his father’s old boss, Aidan. “I expect you to refer to me as Lord Flame, I thought that was clear Engine. I helped you to find your power, I demand respect for all I’ve done for you. I threw all of my resources into trying to save your father, you and your family are still indebted to me.” Gin cringed as he heard this. Sadly, it was true that around a year after Gin’s mother had passed, George’s condition had turned critical. The only one there to help Gin when his father’s medical bills ran his money dry was Aidan.

            “Yeah and I’ve done everything you told me to, you never said anything about having to like it.”

            “Watch your tone, your sentence hasn’t quite run up yet.”

            “Yeah, just a few more months though, then I’ll be free of you.”

            “Oh don’t think like that Engine, I thought 

                      

                   

            ·         Maybe fear has become your fuel? I suppose an imposing threat would activate your stress response and power that magnificent heart of yours.” Rather than feeling insult, Aidan was intrigued by Gin’s newfound backbone. “The power of Etruscion will take away all remnants of your soul and in return, it will leave behind only your present-most trait allowing it to amplify and manifest as a latent, super-natural talent. I could never figure out why your courage had given you so much power; until I realized that you have something much different from courage…but what? What is it Engine, what is it that fuels your heart and glands to pump such massive levels of adrenaline? Why does it allow you to push the barriers of human limitation so well?” Aidan was staring intently at Gin. He wasn’t staring at him though, rather, he was staring through him – entranced by the possibilities of Gin’s potential.

   

Well I was sure I had taught you something Engine, but it seems your old habit is resurfacing. Like a dog bearing its fangs before its master. Maybe fear has become your fuel?” Rather than feeling insult, Aidan was intrigued by Gin’s newfound backbone. “The power of Etruscion will take away all remnants of your soul and in return, it will leave behind only your present-most trait allowing it to amplify and manifest as a latent, super-natural talent. What is it Engine, what is it that fuels your heart?” Aidan was staring intently at Gin. He wasn’t staring at him though, rather, he was staring through him – entranced by the possibilities of Gin’s potential.

                “This won’t kill you Engine. Dammit! Open your eyes! Keep your head up, don’t you even dare to pass out!”

Am I going to die here….so much blood. It’s  cold…can’t keep my eyes open.

“Sir, he’s letting go, we need to back off!”

“No! Keep firing! The boy lives or dies with this exercise. If he does not stand than I expect nothing less than a bullet-riddled corpse against the courtyard wall.”

“Aaaah!” A blood-curdling shriek and utter blackness as Gin awoke in a cold and profuse sweat. He clenched his eyes tightly as he waited for his muscles to contract and relax. His body was automatically set on high alert. It’s the kind of reaction one would expect from someone standing before a firing squad - especially when he was both physically and mentally recalling the full complement of a 30 caliber machine gun rending their flesh over and over. He was panting heavily and looking around his dark room for something to comfort him. He reached down beside his bed to grab a bottle of water which he proceeded to sip from, only to let the majority of the bottle trickle down his nick in an attempt to cool himself off. “Heh, I guess the past is going to haunt me forever. But I can’t be held back forever. One day my prison will shatter. I will earn the right to my life. Until that day comes, I will never give in to despair…I suppose that’s just who I am. The so-called ‘Little Engine that Could,’ I just won’t ever quit.” He laid back down and tried to get back to sleep hoping that tonight he could avoid the nightmares that he couldn’t seem to escape; unfortunately, this night not would not spare Gin from his grief or show him any remorse.

            “Come on in! It’s time for dinner!” Gin could hear the soothing sound of his mother’s voice. When he turned around, he could see his old family home in the distance. A gorgeous old mansion on the outskirts of the city, it sat high up on a hill overlooking a suburban housing settlement.

            “Comin’ ma!” A ten year old, bright-eyed Gin called back to his mother and began sprinting his way back through the dense forest that made up his massive backyard. Well at least it would seem that way to a ten year old. It was a massive property and he had gotten lost out there more than a few times when he was younger. As he approached the back door and the embrace of his mother’s arms, his breath began to constrict. His full sprint devolved into a lumbering stagger and instead of breathing he was gasping for breath.

            “I told you to pace yourself sweetie, here.” Gin’s mother ran out to catch him before he hyperventilated and fell to the ground. She shook up his inhaler, forced it into his mouth and pressed down on the top to administer his asthma medicine. This process was all too common for Gin who, knowing full well about his heart condition, would still insist upon running around with the other children in an attempt to keep up with them. He actually never remained “it” for long when playing tag. He would let out a full burst of speed and generally catch the very same person who tagged him…but he would be out of the game for good after that.

            “Elena? You ready yet? We’re dying of starvation over here hon.” Gin’s father called out with a playful tone.

            “The food’s ready, I was just busy making sure our son doesn’t die.”

            “...Alright well don’t let the steak get cold.”

            “We’re having steak tonight?!” Gin immediately perked up with a bit of a cough and ran out of his mother’s arms and over towards the dining room.

            “Whoa, whoa son. Slow down, we’re all hungry and the food isn’t going anywhere. Geez your mom just treated one asthma attack, you looking for another one so soon?” Gin’s father George grabbed him as he ran past. “You remember my boss Mr. Aidan, right son? Go on and say hi.” Gin turned around to see the massive man who was talking with his father. He was very tan and had long, dark hair with a chin strap that ended in a goatee. He was clearly older than George – though he was very obviously clinging onto what youth he had left. His eyes stared softly, but there was something ostensibly devilish about his smile.

            “Well I’d be awfully upset to hear that you’ve forgotten about me son.” Mr. Aidan stood up out of his seat and looked down at Gin with a gesture of playful disappointment.

            “Hell-o…” Gin’s eyes met with Aidan’s and he felt a chill rush down his spine. He quickly looked away – refusing to make eye contact again. Aidan seemed very overbearing to Gin. He felt a yearning for comfort. He thought about clinging to his father’s leg as any other child would when faced with a somewhat scary stranger.  Though Gin had never been one to fear an unfamiliar face – he had always been quite friendly and maybe a little overly talkative in fact. A 10 year old Gin would not be able to figure it out – a 30 year old Gin, would most likely be puzzled as well. There was something about Aidan’s presence that made Gin feel as though he was unwelcome in his own home. Even his playful attempt at sarcastic disappointment felt more like genuine malice.

            “Haha. What’s the matter? I was only joking. I couldn’t expect you to remember me from so far back. The last time I saw you, you were still in diapers.” Gin could felt a small heft in his chest as Aidan spoke. This feeling of fear was so foreign to him that he could only wear a face of confusion. He stood there staring around the area where Aidan was standing trying as hard as he could not to make eye contact again.

            “Yeah you can’t really expect him to remember something from two weeks ago. He’s not the brightest kid.” George joked and nudged his son on the arm.

            “Hey!” Just like that Gin snapped out of his little funk, turning his attention toward his father. “Shut up dad!” He leaped onto his father’s back and started pounding away with his little fists using his legs to clamp on. George chuckled as he took a beating from his son. He only pretended to fight back as he could tell Gin was still out of breath from his asthma attack earlier. Only Gin himself could tell that his shortness of breath was somehow caused by Aidan, but he continued to pound away at his father hoping to beat back his fears.

            “Don’t break your father. He’s my top man. I need him in good shape.” Aidan chuckled. Gin’s punches got fiercer as he heard Aidan’s voice.

            “Ow! Seriously son, listen to him. You’re going to put my back out.”

            “Honestly George can’t you go five minutes without provoking him? He just had an attack, he needs to rest.” Gin’s mother Elena walked into the room from the kitchen. “Anyway, you have to stop fighting now because the steaks are ready. You don’t want them to get cold do you?” All at once Gin and his father held perfectly still for a split second before the both cried out in unison “Steak!” George Grabbed his son under his arm and rushed them both into the kitchen.

            Gin sat down and started shoveling his food into his mouth. As odd as it sounds, he always loved steak from the point that he was old enough to try it. He tore through the tender meat as fast as he could, hoping to finish and get away from the table where that odd man sat across from him. He never looked up from his plate and when he finished eating he rushed off to his room. “Don’t forget to come back and help me with the dishes!” His mother called to him as he ran off. Though they were wealthy, Gin’s family was very headstrong and often insisted on doing things themselves – which is why there were no servants in their massive mansion of a home.

The adults took their time savoring their much larger portions. When they finished it had been quite some time since Gin had rushed off. George and Aidan retired to the den to discuss professional matters while Gin and his mother cleaned the dishes.

“Mom?” Gin turned to talk to his mother.

“Yeah hon?”

“Who is that man?”

“Mr. Aidan is your father’s boss honey. Didn’t he tell you?”

“I think so. But why is he here?”

“Well your father has been good friends with Mr. Aidan for a long time but now he doesn’t want to work for him anymore. So he wanted to invite Mr. Aidan to a nice meal before giving the bad news.”

“Why doesn’t dad want to work for him anymore?”

“He loves you so much that he wants to be able to spend more time with you.”

“Hmm. What does dad do mom?” It was the first time that Gin had ever wondered what it was that kept his father so busy and away from home all the time. He always felt that when his father could be around he had always done more than enough to make time for him.

“Well you know your dad is really good at getting people to do things they don’t always want to do. It’s called persuasion.”

“Huh?” The young Gin was puzzled, he wasn’t the brightest boy.

“Well, he convinced you that you should do your homework without much trouble didn’t he?”

“Yeah. I guess so.”

“He also got me to make steak for the third night in a row…” Elena said with a troubled look on her face. “Anyway, your dad persuades people to give their resources to Mr. Aidan’s company, and no one does it better than him…or so he says.” She muttered beneath her breath.

“So dad’s going to be home more now?” Gin was excited at the thought of having his dad around more often as he was almost always out of the house working.

“That’s right son.” His mother smiled at him as she handed another rinsed off dish to her son who placed it in the dishwasher. He smiled back at his mother excited to have his dad around more often. “Let’s hope Mr. Aidan doesn’t get too upset with your dad.” At the mention of his name, Gin thought about Aidan’s presence and he lost his breath for a moment.

“Mom? I-is Mr. Aidan mad at me?”

“Of course not.” Elena chuckled. She looked over to see a thousand yard stare on her young son’s face and realized the seriousness of his inquiry. “Why would you think that?” she asked with a motherly concern. Gin didn’t answer, he was lost in thought. His mother bent down and hugged him tightly. “Honey, if Mr. Aidan is mad at anyone, it’s your father. You have nothing to worry about...though his face is kind of scary huh?” They both shared a laugh – though Gin’s was more of a nervous chuckle – and after a peck on the forehead from his mother, Gin ran back up to his room.

“I’m done Flame. It’s time I get what I want and what I want, is to spend time with my family.” Gin’s father sternly protested. Seldom had he been heard with such a serious tone of voice.

“You’re done, when I say you’re done. I think you forget who it was that brought you up. You would have nothing without me. I did for you what no one else ever would. Your debt has yet to be repaid.” Aidan retorted.

That night Gin lied awake in his bed. The young boy was confused by the commotion he faintly overheard between his father and his so called ‘boss.’       

                     “I have done everything you have asked of me. Not a single expectation went unmet. Kronos is well established now and you have more resources than you could ever need. What more could you possibly ask of me Flame?”

            “You so easily forget your position George? I suppose arrogance has always been your biggest vice. Don’t think you won’t be punished for your hubris. The origins don’t like their lap dogs to have self-awareness.”

            “Enough Flame – Aidan…This is not the life I want for my family. My time is short and I won’t let you scare me into submission anymore. I will go to Etruscion myself if I must.”

            “Fine. Attempt to stand before Etruscion without the power of Kronos behind you. I’d be interested to see how you fare.” With that, Aidan bowed out in silence. He left with a look of pious disappointment on his face. You could almost hear him saying “you’ll regret this George, please don’t make an enemy of me,” but Aidan was never one to appear weak. None of this came through to Gin clearly. He could only faintly recall some of the odd names they mentioned echoing through the halls of his massive home. He had fallen asleep before the conversation had ended, and after that night, Aidan was neither seen nor spoken of in Gin’s home.

The next three years went by in the blink of any eye. Gin’s eleventh birthday was the first one his father was able to be around for in the last five years. It warmed his heart well to have his best friend home all the time and ready to play. Though Gin was always very gregarious, the difficulty he had in keeping up with the other children – caused by his heart condition – left him with only a handful of close friends through his adolescence. Even when he would insist he could keep going, he would do so through spells of dry heaves and wheezing which his mother could not stand to bare. So the boy turned to his father, his hero, for friendship. For as long as he could, George made sure that Gin would head out into the yard with him every day. They would play tag or wrestle – really any type of activity that would help to strengthen Gin’s breathing little by little. After all, Gin did get his heart condition from his father in the first place, who better to know how to fight back against it? Gin and his parents spent every day together through his youth and when he finally did make more friends, he still yearned for quality time with his parents and he would choose them over his friends more often than not. That twelve year old boy could not possibly have ever been happier…nor would he have the chance to be.

“It was all a lie.” Gin thought to himself. “The comfort of love and happiness lulled me into a false sense of security so I could be dragged down further. My world began to unravel in one night of terror.” By the time Gin turned thirteen, his father’s condition had worsened. They did not have the chance to play together like they used to. George spent the majority of his time in bed which was very uncharacteristic of a man his age. Gin and Elena did all they could to help get him back on his feet.

            “Come on dad, you have to get up. We should totally go for a run, it’s a great day outside. I bet I can finally beat you up that huge hill on Parnell. What do ya say? Winner gets to do my homework for me. Eh? Sound tantalizing dad.” Gin joked to get his father’s spirits up.

            “Wow son that sounds really tempting. It’s so exciting I think my heart may finally just give out if I think about it anymore.” George replied.

            “Hey!” Elena punched George on the shoulder. “Don’t even joke about that. And, hey!” She then proceeded to punch Gin on the shoulder.

            “Ow! What?!”

            “You better get that homework done before you go anywhere.” She scolded in an oddly motherly fashion.

            “Fine, I’ll do it right now…if dad gets up and goes for a run with me. Come on dad let’s go.” Gin grabbed his father by the arm and attempted to drag him out of bed. “Come on pops, we’ve got to put some more mileage on you before we can trade you in.” Gin was insistent on getting his father to better himself. After all, George had done the same for his son; and although Gin would never say it out loud – for fear of hurting his father’s feelings – but seeing his hero defeated by the same condition George had once helped Gin to conquer, was killing him inside. He couldn’t stand by and watch his father rot from the inside out.

            “I’m sorry son….” George gasped for breath. “I just can’t today. Why don’t you ask one of your friends to go with you.”

            “Fine, I’ll give you a pass today.” Gin replied. “But you have to promise to come with me tomorrow.” In truth, Gin wished taking his friends would have been the same, but it never was. Only when he ran with his father did he feel like he was accomplishing something. Everyday the two of them would get just a little bit further together before they would both start wheezing. They would have humorous bets to see who would go into shock first, needless to say…they both needed a ride home rather often. But now, they almost never ran together. So rarely did George find the strength to even climb the massive flight of stairs in their estate.

            That night after dinner, Gin came home alone. His run was so underwhelming that he wasn’t breathing heavily in the slightest. Gin walked into the kitchen hoping to grab a drink – and maybe pick at some leftovers. “Alright, mom packed up some leftovers for lunch tomorrow. Crap, can I eat them now? If I do I won’t have them for tomorrow!” He clasped his hands against his head and ran his fingers through his hair as he wracked his brain for a solution to his current predicament. “Ah! I want ‘em so ba-“ Just then, Gin heard the sound of shattering glass followed by a muffled scream. “Mom!?” Gin called out. “You okay ma?! You need me?!”  Gin peered down the darkened hallway connecting their kitchen to the living room.

            “Don’t come any closer kid or I blow her face off!”  It was late at night at the lights were off in the house so Gin could not see clearly. All he could make out were two black silhouettes standing in the living room. Behind them he could see a small hole where some moonlight came in through a broken window. The light from the moon revealed the bottom of Elena’s dress. Gin could see the heel of his mother’s shoe which was closed in by what looked like a black combat boot. He heard grunts and groans that sounded a lot like his mother and right by the source of the sound he could see a slight silver glint from the light of the moon. Gin didn’t want to process what was going on. He had a feeling that once the situation was accepted, it was the truthful reality. There was no denying it though, his mother was being held hostage with a gun to hear head.

            “Mom!” Gin called out from the darkness. “My…mom. What’s going to happen to my mom? I need to run, I need to get dad, I need to get anyone that can help.” It was all Gin could think about. He knew his only choices now where to try to escape to the darkness, or calmly listen to what this intruder had to say, which is why his next move came as much of a surprise to him as anyone else. “You better fucking let go of my mom!” His eyes were wide and his stance strong. “Why did I say that?! I need dad. What can I do on my own? He has a gun, he could kill her.” He couldn’t believe what he had just done but something inside him would not allow him to sit still.

            “You better watch your mouth you little shit! I could end her life any second if I wanted to.”

            “Don’t say that about my mom!” Gin’s heat was beating wildly. He was a frail thirteen year old boy with a heart condition staring down the darkened silhouette of an armed stranger who was holding in his hands the fate of that which Gin held most dear. Gin knew he was completely powerless in this situation, but he didn’t care. The end of that hallway could have held countless demons from a far off dimension but as long as they were threatening the life of Gin’s loved one, they would be no more frightening than a litter of puppies.

            “Honey, you’ve got to calm down.” Elena struggled to speak through her captor’s bonds. “Ngh. I’ll be okay. Just do what he says and I promise you we will be oka-!” The captor jerked Elena’s body towards him and tightened his grip.

            “Shut the hell up. Both of you!” Elena’s captor screamed as he tightened his grip yet again and placed the barrel of his gun firmly into her temple.

            “Agh!” Elena called out in pain.

            “Ngh! Leave her alone! I’ll fucking kill you!” Gin was seething. His heart was racing so fast he was beginning to wheeze.

            “That’s it kid.” The captor kicked Elena in the shin to break her stance.

            “Agh!” Elena cried out yet again as the her captor’s boot dug into her leg leaving her shin severely wounded. 

            “Lady, I’ve had just about enough of that smart-mouthed brat of a son you’ve got there.” He raised his gun towards Gin and pointed it firmly at his forehead while adjusting his stance to support Elena whose was struggling to stand with her wounded leg. “If your kid continues to behave like an animal, then I’m going to have to put him down.” Elena, whose torso was now titled toward the ground, supported by nothing but her good leg and the arm of her captor which she was hanging from, jerked her head upward. She saw the horror of a gun being pointed at her child and went into a berserk rage just as Gin had.

            She let out a loud yelp and threw her head into her captor’s torso. She then sunk the heel of the shoe on her good foot into one of his shins, just as he had done to her, and summoned all of her strength to push his gun aside and skew his aim.

            “Mom!” Gin cried out and started sprinting towards the two as soon as the gun barrel lost its target.

            “Ngh! You bitch!” The captor screamed as his shin was assaulted. He pushed Elena’s face away from his torso and let the rest of her body drop to the ground as he readjusted his aim. He pointed his gun down toward Elena as Gin flew in to tackle him. A loud bang went off, followed immediately by a thud as two more bodies and a hand gun hit the ground hard.

            “Agh! Hah hah! You bastard! Hah hah!” Gin was sitting on top of his mother’s assailant radically throwing punches and panting. His heart was pounding harder than it ever had before and tears were streaming profusely down his face. He got in a few good blows before the assailant sat up and knocked the small thirteen year-old in the face so hard that he flew back towards his mother’s body. Gin could not even bare to look to confirm if she was okay. He knew that if anything else had happened to her, he would fly into such a blind rage that the resulting stress response would send him into anaphylactic shock and he would be completely helpless to aid or – less preferably – avenge his mother. Gin had to perish the thought and focus on the task at hand. He stood back up and wiped the blood from his face. He was ready to dive right back in and fight until his little body could not hold up anymore.

            “I’m going to love beating some sense into you kid.” The assailant rose and walked toward the helpless young teen. The look on Gin’s face would terrifying, he truly had the eyes of a killer. He looked right through the man before him and saw him as nothing but sentient trash that needed to be burned. As the assailant got closer Gin brought up his leg for a kick hoping that his legs would do significantly more damage than his arms – he most likely would have been right if his kick had landed, but the assailant grabbed Gin’s leg and drew him in closer. Gin immediately took four right hooks to the face that knocked his head back with every impact. On the fourth punch he hit the ground hard and shut his eyes. “Now stay down kid, I’ve got a job to finish.”

            “You get back here you pile of crap.” Gin refused to let his attacker slink off. He grabbed the assailant’s leg and started punching it. He hadn’t landed three punches before he felt the tip of a combat boot in his temple.

            “It’s only going to get worse for you if you don’t stay down kid.” The assailant continued forward to pick up his gun.

            “Agh!” Gin cried out and kicked the unsuspecting assailant while his back was turned.

            “That is it kid! I told you to stay down, now I’m going to have to put you down.” When the assailant got back up on his feet, he turned toward Gin and cocked his hand gun aiming it once again at Gin’s forehead. Gin stared deeply into the familiar gun barrel once more. His heart was pounding in his chest. He was in an excruciating amount of pain and he was bleeding profusely.

            “Did I kill my mother?” Staring death in the face, all Gin could wonder about was his mother. “Is she okay? Was it my fault? What else could I do for her?” Gin was so fixated on the choices he had made. “He hurt my mom. I had to protect her. I needed to hit him and so, that’s what I did.” He felt somewhat contented by that thought. Instead of being dominated by what would scare off any other person, Gin focused on attempting to resolve the situation in the way he most saw fit. He took a deep breath and exhaled heavily while trying to calm his heart rate. He heard the sound of the gun cock and contemplated rushing forward in a last desperate attempt but before he could take a step…The loud bang of a gun went off.

            “Check on your mother!” It was George slinking down the stairs, gripping the railing in one hand, and a hand gun in the other. The assailant went down and his blood began to drench the carpet. Gin’s tears only stopped for an instant as he immediately turned around to check on his mother. As it turned out, Gin was able to spare her the bullet, but it may have been a less cruel fate than what she had actually suffered through. The various severe instances of blunt force trauma she received to the head that night caused an aneurism which killed her. Gin bent down over his mother’s corpse and held her tightly as he cried. His father, despite his dangerously high heart rate, rushed down the steps to console his son. The family sat there for hours without saying a word.

            They were so deep in mourning, they never would have noticed, the man that they thought had been shot dead had completely disappeared. He crept off into the darkness when Gin and his father were distracted. Outside the estate, the assailant regained his composure. He plucked the bullet wound from his chest, it was just above his heart. He held his hand up to the fleshy wound, closed his eyes, and took a deep breath in through the nostrils. The muscles in his chest tightened and began to glow as the wound started to heal itself. He then pulled a phone out of his pocket. “Is it done?” A deep voice asked from the other side of the phone.

            “I think I got the woman, but that kid is a different story. He freaked out and attacked me! What kind of a kid tackles an armed gunman? And then, we got into a fist fight and I pummeled him real good – even used my scion powers at one point, but the kid would not stay down. It was the craziest thing.”

            “Failure is unacceptable scion.”

            “I know bu-“ The assailant tried to argue but he was cut off.

            “Do not back talk scion, return to the tower immediately.”

            “…Y-yes sir Lord Flame.”

            Gin awoke from that night the same way he had for the entirety of his teenage years. He was covered in tears, sobbing into his hands, unable to get up and start the day. “What is wrong with me?” He wondered aloud. “Why couldn’t I save her? That man was armed, what was I thinking?” He clenched his forehead hard with one hand and streaked his fingers through his hair. “Dammit!” He punched into his wall in blind frustration. Most of his nights went about like this. He would unintentionally reflect on the darkness of his youth and the terrible fate that had been thrust upon him. “Well, maybe a run will cheer me up.” He said taking a deep breath. So he started to run, and he ran hard. He must have gone for hours – heading to the very limits of the city, he didn’t even feel tired. When he finally reached his destination, he looked up to see his old family estate. It was at that second that Gin’s exhaustion caught up with him. His heart had been racing at an unnatural pace just as he knew it would, but he couldn’t control the loss of breath he felt by stepping back into his home. This place, it was the source of so much happiness and at the same time, so much grief.

            “Hello Engine.” From inside the house, a familiar voice echoed forth that sent a small chill through Gin’s body.

            “…Can’t you leave me alone?” Gin grunted. “What are you even doing here?”

            “Oh come now son, I could ask you the same thing. This Estate is technically mine now, I’m sure you remember signing it over to me when I offered to help treat your father.” Gin didn’t answer. He just looked at Aidan with contempt. His instinct was to back-talk, but his training taught him better; still, something inside him was changing, he felt safer now speaking his mind before Aidan than he ever had before.

            “Yeah we both know how that turned out…” Gin gave Aidan a cold stare. There was a slight trembling behind his voice as his heart began to pound.

            “Well I was sure I had taught you something Engine, but it seems your old habit is resurfacing. Like a dog bearing its fangs before its master. Maybe fear has become your fuel? I suppose an imposing threat would activate your stress response and power that magnificent heart of yours.” Rather than feeling insult, Aidan was intrigued by Gin’s newfound backbone. “The power of Etruscion will take away all remnants of your soul and in return, it will leave behind only your present-most trait allowing it to amplify and manifest as a latent, super-natural talent. I could never figure out why your courage had given you so much power; until I realized that you have something much different from courage…but what? What is it Engine, what is it that fuels your heart and glands to pump such massive levels of adrenaline? Why does it allow you to push the barriers of human limitation so well?” Aidan was staring intently at Gin. He wasn’t staring at him though, rather, he was staring through him – entranced by the possibilities of Gin’s potential.

            “Not this crap again.” Gin thought to himself. “Hey!” He called to Aidan, to snap him out of his trance.

            “Don’t you ever wonder Engine?!” Aidan stood up from his seat and slowly walked toward Gin. “What was your trait - what could possibly have amplified to change your physiology in such a way?!” Aidan had the look of a hungry predator eyeing Gin as though he were a tasty meal.

            “You got me.” Gin replied shrugging his shoulders. After all, his body wasn’t actually functioning differently than it should have – it was a natural process, multiplied several million times over. When Gin’s body would go through the normal human stress response, he would receive a copious amount of epinephrine from the adrenal glands which is heart would pump several times faster than that of a normal human being. Normally, adrenaline surges allow humans to briefly perform at 100% of their physical potential while simultaneously rejuvenating the body. Gin, on the other hand, could go well beyond this ‘normal’ potential, and then some, as long as his stressors were sustained.

            “Well, I can see your ignorance hasn’t changed.” Aidan replied as Gin grimaced and scratched the back of his neck. “One day soon, I’m sure we will come to understand this power of yours Engine.”

            “I still don’t understand your fixation with me; the power of an origin easily dwarves my own.” Gin snapped Aidan out of his trance with that remark.

            “Yes. Indeed, we are rather glorious.” Aidan proclaimed his self-adoration.

            “Ah yes, the mighty origins, the great kingpins of Chronos.” Gin stated in a sarcastic tone as he dramatically danced about the room. “So powerful and cunning they are; tricking a powerful demon by using the souls of their followers to pay off their debt to him.” Gin stopped his dramatic prance and turned to Aidan with a look of condescension. “So what’s the conversion rate of deceit to glory again?” It was the first time he had ever been so forward with Aidan. “Ah!” Gin cried out as Aidan grabbed him by the throat. He could feel his flesh started to burn as simmering steam rose up and into his eyes from the point where Aidan grasped at his throat.

            “It was cute the first time Engine. But now I find your new tone sickening.” A fire burned in Aidan’s eyes and small embers began to swell at his feet. “You are not to talk back to or mock the origins. Do not forget that you belong to the origins – you belong to Chronos. Don’t forget who saved you from your weakness…Eug-”

            “Don-Don’t!” Gin screamed struggling for breath. His powerful, adrenaline fueled muscles aiding his strength, giving him just enough energy to speak through Aidan’s vice grip. Aidan let up on his grip. “Please - Lord Flame…I’m sorry I insulted you.” Gin tried as hard as he could to make himself sound humbled.

            “Don’t let it happen again. I don’t know what happened to you Engine, but you better get a grip.” Aidan put Gin down but the embers continued to burn into the old carpeting.

            “Y-yes sir.” Gin obediently replied.

            “Take the rest of the night to cool off. I have something I need you to take care of tomorrow night.” Aidan turned away from Gin and headed out the door.

Gin took a deep breath and rubbed his hand over his throat where he had been grabbed. “Damn that’s gonna burn for a while.” He headed upstairs to his parent’s old bedroom. “I bet dad’s old emergency kit is still in the side table drawer by his bed.” Gin thought to himself.