The Mystery of the Bakersfield 3: Two friends disappeared, a third died in a drive-by shooting. Their families suspected the crimes were linked. How did Baylee Despot, Micah Holsonbake, and James Kulstad end up in the middle of an arms trafficking and murder plot in their California city?
Over the course of 34 days in the spring of 2018, three unsettling crimes played out in the city of Bakersfield, California. The families of the three victims realized their children all knew each other and ran in the same circles, and they began to suspect that all three crimes were connected. But what began as a crusade for justice among grieving parents took a shocking turn when investigators discovered that the so-called Bakersfield 3 were embroiled in a criminal underworld of black-market weapons smuggling, the Hells Angels, unspecified ties to drug cartels, torture and kidnapping, and a convicted felon nicknamed “The Boogeyman of Bakersfield.” This is a genuinely bizarre case, and while I’ve never written up a case for this sub before, I’ve been following this story closely for the past couple years. The last time it was mentioned on here over a year ago, but there have been some huge recent developments in the last year that I thought deserved as comprehensive a telling as possible. And despite all that, it's nowhere near resolved. So without further ado... Part 1: Missing On March 23,2018, Micah Holsonbake, 34, went missing in East Bakersfield near the intersection of Flower Street and Mount Vernon Avenue. Micah was a clean-cut dad who worked in finance, a former high school debater who loved karaoke despite not being any good at it. He was presumed endangered missing until August 22, 2018, when teenagers swimming near a local park found an arm in the Kern River that was identified as his. The rest of his body has never been found. On April 18, 2018, James Kulstad, 38, was murdered on a quiet block in Southwest Bakersfield. A father of two daughters, James was a serial entrepreneur described as the type of man who “could sell a dollar bill on the side of the road for a million dollars if he could just get 5 minutes with you.” His brother Ryan heard the gunshots from the next street over, but didn’t see the shooter, and he claims he held James as he died in his arms. On April 25, 2018, Baylee Parrent-Despot, 20, disappeared from Rosedale, the upper-middle-class neighborhood in Northwest Bakersfield where she’d grown up. Baylee described herself as a “flower child” who had been born in the wrong generation. After facing a number of serious challenges, she was struggling to get her life back on track, and was said to be pregnant and trying to leave her boyfriend when she went missing. She has never been heard from again. Local media christened Micah, James, and Baylee the “Bakersfield 3” after the victims’ families discovered that all three victims knew one another. In the wake of the links between all three disappearances coming to light, Micah’s father told a local news reporter, “Just to be blunt, something happened to Micah… and a month later something happened to Baylee, and I think it’s because she knew what happened to Micah.” And in between them, there was James Kulstad, who ran in the same drug-fueled circles as Baylee and had helped Micah move just weeks before they both were killed. Bakersfield is a city of half a million people, but on a social level, it can feel as insular as any small town — you’re rarely more than one or two degrees removed from anyone you meet — and even in a city where everyone seems to know everyone, it’s hard to buy three friends all going missing within the space of a month by sheer coincidence. But as time went on with few official developments in the investigation, it seemed like people largely lost interest in the case by late 2019. Then, in 2020, the Kern County District Attorney’s office charged three people with a total of 34 different charges, ranging from first degree murder, torture, kidnapping, assault with a firearm, and illegal manufacturing of assault weapons. Two of the defendants were already in custody — and the third may not even be alive. Part 2: Some Local Context By every metric, Bakersfield is just a flat-out terrible place to live. It’s my hometown, I left for a reason, and the reason is that it sucks. Kern County suffers from a slew of serious socioeconomic and public health problems, the largest of which is probably related to economic and income inequality. A fifth of the population is under the poverty line, and crime rates are sky-high, especially drug-related ones. Opioid abuse is rampant, though it still falls second to methamphetamine, the most widespread drug in the area. There’s a significant issue with white supremacist gang violence. When I was 16, my 70-year-old next-door neighbor got stabbed in a biker gang fight at a tattoo parlor by a Hells Angel called “Delano Mike.” A high school chemistry teacher was literally arrested for trying to make meth in his classroom three months before Breaking Bad even premiered. This is a region with a lot of serious problems that go deeper than any one symptom, but suffice it to say, there’s a reason I moved away as soon as I tuned 18. The other thing you need to know is that despite being one of the most conservative cities in California, there’s a widespread distrust of law enforcement outside of the police and courts themselves — and, frankly, for good reason. Corruption in the justice system is widespread, and basically a local tradition dating back to the tenure of longtime district attorney Ed Jagels, perhaps best known for ramming through 36 false convictions of ritual child abuse at the height of the satanic panic. (34 were eventually overtured, and the other two people convicted died in prison and never saw justice.) Jagels’ history of prosecutorial misconduct is also the subject of Mean Justice, a 600-page doorstopper by Pulitzer-winning author Edward Humes about the wrongful conviction of Pat Dunn, who is currently serving a life sentence for the murder of his wife despite a wealth of evidence that would suggest his innocence. In 2002, Jagels’ protege, an assistant district attorney named Steve Tauzer, was murdered by a former Bakersfield police deputy, Chris Hillis, after Hillis allegedly learned that Tauzer had a sexual relationship with Hillis’ 22-year-old son, an addict in recovery; facing first-degree murder charges, he pled out to manslaughter and received a 12-year prison sentence. In 2015, The Guardian published an in-depth exposé about how widespread corruption within the local law enforcement community led to Kern County having the highest rate of police killings in the country: the deadliest cops per capita. And over the past several years, the Kern County law enforcement community has been mired in a police corruption scandal in which members of the BPD abused asset forfeiture laws to illegally seize guns, drugs, and money from suspects, which they in turn trafficked for personal gain. All this is to say that Bakersfield cops and prosecutors have not engendered much public trust outside of their own communities. In a city with high rates of violent crime, law enforcement has consistently put its own interests above public safety, justice, or victims’ rights. That's just something to keep in mind while reading. Part 3: Down the Rabbit Hole Micah In the weeks and months prior to Micah Holsonbake’s disappearance, his family could tell that something was troubling him. Lance and Cheryl Holsonbake both recalled their son behaving erratically in the days before he vanished. But none of it seemed to make any sense coming from someone like Micah, whose family described him as intelligent and hard-working. He had a comfortable upbringing in Rosedale and worked his way into a lucrative career as a financial advisor despite only one year of college. In the photo his family circulated following his disappearance, he wore the suit and tie and placid smile of someone posing for a corporate headshot. But Micah was going through a dark time following a rocky separation from his wife and family, and had been struggling with a painkiller addiction for the past two years. The year before, he’d been laid off from his job after going on disability leave due to depression. According to court documents, Micah owed drug-related debts to members of the Hells Angels as well as “the cartel.” One friend of Micah’s told police his life seemed to be headed in a downward spiral after he lost the ability to see his son, and often got in fights with others at bars. In one witness statement, an unidentified woman told police of a prior incident when she and Holsonbake were kidnapped at gunpoint and driven to an orchard in west Bakersfield. Holsonbake bolted from the vehicle as it was moving, she told police. That account was corroborated by a friend of Holsonbake's who told police that he said he had been kidnapped at gunpoint. He told his parents that he feared for his life, frequently thought he was being followed in his car, and rambled about various people he believed were out to get him, but they mostly wrote it off. James Micah had been hanging around with James Kulstad for some time before he disappeared. It’s not clear when they first met, but it appears they become friendly through the drug scene. Like Micah, James first became addicted to prescription painkillers after being hit by a car, before progressing to fentanyl patches and eventually heroin. He’d been a single father to his daughters Camryn and August. His obituary characterized him as a free-wheeling surfer who held a patent for an action sports product and earned the nickname “Joe Vegas” for his love of gambling and table games. Camryn, now 19, says she and James had an especially close relationship after her mother died when Camryn was an infant, and James often warned her against getting involved with drugs and partying in a clear-headed way, which made it even harder to watch him spiral downward in the years before his death. “I felt like I lost him before I even lost him, but I worked so hard,” she told a reporter. “I was working so hard on everything I could do to make him get better… I was hanging onto hope and whoever killed him took that away from me. I don’t have that anymore, I don’t have hope.” In the wake of her father’s death, Camryn says that a number of stories and rumors about his life surfaced, further complicating her grief. “Some of the stories I’ve heard is that he was a really bad person these last 3 years,” she said in 2019. On the night of his murder, James reportedly drove to an acquaintance’s home in Southwest Bakersfield where his brother Ryan Kulstad was hanging out. Ryan claims that the homeowner allegedly owed money to James and told Ryan that if James came over to his house, he’d “call his boys and they’d come over there strapped,” which Ryan says he didn’t interpret as a serious threat. Ryan and James reportedly argued about this on the phone, and James showed up at the house a couple hours later. Ryan says he had just returned from driving someone else home and noticed a driver in a silver sedan behaving suspiciously as he returned to the house. Moments later, Ryan and his unidentified male passenger heard gunshots on the next block: an unknown gunman opened fire on James from another car, causing him to crash into a parked trailer. The same silver sedan was seen speeding away from the scene. The owner of the home where this all took place was Dr. Sukhjeet Bajwa, who at the time was a chiropractor with a local practice. Bajwa lived in a quiet subdivision in Southwest Bakersfield. It was an unlikely setting for a drive-by, and according to initial news reports, police were at a loss for the motive behind the killing, or what James was even doing in the neighborhood at all. Then things began to unravel: Bajwa, it turned out, had been arrested twice in 2016 and 2017 after driving while impaired, and in addition to liquid heroin, Xanax, and hydrocodone, police also found two unregistered, loaded guns in his car, an AR-15 and a .22LR semi-automatic rifle with a fake silencer attached. All of this was detailed in a disciplinary complaint filed by the California Board of Chiropractic Examiners, and after Bajwa’s name began repeatedly surfacing in connection with the shooting, a rumor began to circulate about a black-market gun and drug trafficking ring in which Bajwa was supposedly a central figure. It was the type of conspiracy theory most people instinctively write off as too bizarre to be credible. But it must have rung a bell to Lance Holsonbake. Before Micah’s disappearance, he told his father that he was “putting together guns for people,” according to a 2019 interview. Lance said he reacted in disbelief to this confession, because the idea that Micah would risk his career by getting involved in illegal gun manufacturing just didn’t make sense. “If you’re this afraid, just stop,” Lance recalls telling him. “And he’d say, ‘I can’t do that I can’t do that.’ He was afraid he did that they would hurt his family.” He wrote it off as paranoia exaggerated by his son’s drug use, and didn’t know how much of it was real and how much was in Micah’s mind. According to Lance, Bakersfield police initially suggested that Micah had left town of his own volition after getting mixed up in criminal activity and, from what I can tell, didn’t make much of an effort to investigate. Though the family says he was last seen on March 23, 2018, Bakersfield police claimed he wasn’t reported missing until April 4, and it appears they waited until April 13, when he’d been missing for almost a month, before BPD made its first public statement regarding his disappearance. After James was murdered a few days later, the Holsonbake and Kulstad families grew increasingly frustrated with the apparent lack of interest in investigating either case, and told the media later that as they began digging into the circumstances surrounding both cases, one name kept coming up with everyone they talked to: Baylee Despot. And within a week, Baylee Despot had also gone missing in Bakersfield. Baylee Baylee Parrent-Despot was 20 years old when she was reported missing in April 2018, and the families say that it was her disappearance that finally motivated the police and local news to start investigating the links between all three cases, for reasons that seem obvious to anyone who has ever seen the media react to a pretty white 20-year-old going missing. Her sister, Katelyn Parrent, describes her as “a girl that’s grown up in a good neighborhood, raised by good parents, had a good childhood, could’ve had everything she ever wanted,” much like James and Micah. And beneath the surface, she was as troubled as either of the men: after graduating high school, she’d run off to Vegas to marry her boyfriend, but their rocky relationship turned into an abusive marriage that ended just a year later in 2017. In the aftermath, she wrecked her car, lost her job, and in her mother’s words, “Her life just spiraled out of control.” In July 2017, Baylee was arrested for disorderly conduct in front of her friend Micah Holsonbake’s house. This came as a surprise to her sister, who had at one point been friendly with Micah herself — she didn’t realize he and Baylee even knew each other. But even though he was 14 years Baylee’s senior, Katelyn remembered him as a clean-cut guy who worked at a bank, and their mother, Jane Parrent, says Micah helped her get a restraining order against an abusive ex-boyfriend. They didn’t see any cause for concern. Still, Baylee’s life continued to spiral out of control. The following month, she was drugged and gang-raped at an acquaintance’s apartment complex. She disappeared for days at a time and resurfaced with “horrible stories” or pleading phone calls begging to be picked up. On one occasion, Katelyn remembers, “She had none of her belongings, no shoes… A couple nights after that there were two vehicles that came to pick her up and we could tell by the look on her face that she didn’t want to go, but if she didn’t go, we didn’t know what would happen.” Matthew Not long after that incident, Baylee had a new boyfriend. Matthew Queen was 43 years old, a convicted felon, and an all-around bad dude. Not much is known about his background, with one major exception: in the early 2000s, he plead guilty to one count of making a false statement to a federal firearms dealer after he used a false address, but his real name, to purchase $11,000 in guns from dealers in Indiana. Many of those guns were later recovered at crime scenes in Detroit and Chicago. If you want an idea of what type of criminal mastermind we’re dealing with here, I recommend reading just the final ruling on that case from the 7th Circuit court of appeals:
“We reject Queen's argument that gun buyers may lie about a street address so long as they live within the state where the gun is sold . . . Queen in fact had once lived in an apartment at 2072 Egret Court, but he did not live at this address when he completed the forms and bought the guns because he was evicted on December 18, 2000, for nonpayment of rent."
Great. Sounds like a great guy. Lest you assume Matthew Queen might have hypothetically seen the error of his ways and cleaned up his act after this early foray into gunrunning, he absolutely did not. In December 2017, just a couple weeks into Matthew and Baylee’s relationship, they were arrested after police found four unmarked, unregistered, loaded assault rifles in Matthew’s car during a traffic stop. Neither he or Baylee said a word to the police, but while Matthew (who, as a convicted felon, was prohibited from carrying any guns or ammunition at all) was charged with several felonies, while Baylee pled no contest to a lesser misdemeanor and received three years probation. Later that month, she moved in with Matthew, his mother, and his estranged wife. Baylee’s family saw and heard even less from her. And in April, a month after Micah’s disappearance and just one day after she and Matthew attended a court date for the weapons charges, Baylee went missing. Her mother believed she was pregnant with Matthew’s child and was trying to leave him at the time. Matthew told police that she had connections through her father's side of the family with a Mexican drug cartel and believed they had something to do with her disappearance. Local interest in the case reached an even greater frenzy after Micah’s severed arm was found in the Kern River in Hart Park on the east side of town, not far from from where he was last seen. It was positively identified in late December 2018. By this point, the family of the Bakersfield 3's investigation had amassed around 10,000 followers on Facebook and another 5,000 in a private group, and the story was a fixture on local news. Another curveball came around this time too, when a former friend of Baylee’s named Sara Wedemeyer, 21, filed a restraining order against Baylee’s mother, Jane Parrent. As it was reported, Sara had moved in with Matthew mere weeks after Baylee disappeared, and she was four months pregnant with his child when she attempted to take out legal action against Mrs. Parrent, whom she claimed was harassing her and her “fiancé” by hanging up missing person fliers in their neighborhood. The restraining order wasn't granted, but Queen allegedly began making disturbing social media posts about Baylee, Micah, and the Parrent family, with Mrs. Parrent as the primary target. And in mid-2019, the investigation seemed to grind to a halt. Part 4: New Developments On May 27, 2020, roughly two years after the first developments in the Bakersfield 3 case, the Kern County District Attorney held at a press conference to announce they believe Baylee Despot and Matthew Queen “deliberately and with premeditation" murdered Micah Holsonbake. Despot and Queen, along with a third man, Matthew Vandecasteele, were charged with the alleged kidnapping, torture, and first degree murder, as well as unlawful manufacturing of assault weapons, conspiracy relating to the murder and torture plot, and a slew of other assault and gun charges (34 in total). Queen and Vandacasteele were both in custody at the time the charges against them were filed, but even though Baylee still has not been seen or heard from since 2018, the DA’s office issued a warrant for her arrest, leading some to speculate she may still be alive. According to court records, Matthew Queen allegedly believed that Micah Holsonbake had stolen a .44-caliber revolver from him. He and Baylee Despot kidnapped Micah, zip-tied him to a chair in Matthew Vandecasteele’s garage, and attempted to torture him in order to extract information from him. A blood stain in the garage matched Holsonbake’s DNA. Vandecasteele told police that he didn’t see or hear Micah on the night he was killed, but knew that the other two had brought him there to question him. After several hours, Baylee allegedly returned to the apartment seeming “flustered” and changed her clothes in a back bedroom. Before they left, “Queen told Vandecasteele that he had cleaned everything up and it was OK to go inside the garage.” The next day, Queen returned to Vandecasteele’s apartment and said he “needed help disposing of something” in a large black storage container in the trunk of his car. Vandecasteele claims he refused to help with disposing of the body, but according police reports, his Google history during that period of time included searches for “lye chemical formula,” “lye for sale” and “how long does it take to dissolve a human body,” as well as browsing for lye on the Home Depot and Lowe’s websites. Queen, Despot, and Vandacasteele allegedly manufactured and sold AR-15s from gun build kits. Other witness testimony released by the courts described various kidnappings that witnesses allege Queen, known as “the boogeyman of Bakersfield,” committed. In one incident, Queen allegedly handcuffed one victim to a chair and put an electric dog collar around his neck because he believed the man had stolen a gun part from him. Another witness said that Queen and Vandacasteele showed up armed at his hotel room after the witness told Baylee where he was staying, and that he believed they intended to kill him because he’d been arrested “with a large quantity of narcotics that he was fronted or given without paying for them and the people who had gave him the narcotics could have been upset.” (According to the police report, surveillance footage from the hotel corroborates this account.) It’s also believed that he made anonymous calls to the police tip line to misdirect the investigation away from himself: one such caller referred to Baylee as a “sugar momma,” a phrase which Queen reportedly used to describe her when he spoke to investigators in August 2019, and he also used the same pseudonym on the tip line that he did on social media. When police questioned him around this time, he denied being part of a criminal enterprise and claimed he could barely pay his bills. Then, while out on bail for unrelated gun charges in January 2019, Queen allegedly kidnapped another man at gunpoint and forced him to walk into the Kern River while Queen accused him of snitching to the cops. He’s been in custody since July of 2019 due to this kidnapping. Part 5: No Body, No Crime So where is Baylee Despot? According to official statements from law enforcement, no one knows. After the warrant was issued for her arrest, a wave of speculation followed that she had faked her own death or fled to Mexico with the help of unspecified “cartel connections.” That story seems less and less likely as more details have emerged from court documents. Vandecasteele told the police that Despot was “falling apart mentally” after murdering Micah. He and Queen both suspected that she was cooperating with police on an investigation relating to the illegal weapons charges, called her a “snitch” in one interview, and told investigators he believed Queen “made her disappear.” In one interview, a female witness said Queen kidnapped her at gunpoint, took her to an orchard, and held an AR-15 to her head while he questioned her about whether Baylee was faithful to him. When police questioned him about Baylee’s disappearance in July 2019, he said was depressed and off her medications, and she had said she wanted to die. When the investigator told Queen there had been allegations of domestic violence involving him and Baylee, some of which resulted in bruises, Queen said he never laid a hand on anyone. He told the detective she was clumsy. Despite all of this, Jane Parrent says that police have told her that they don’t consider Matthew Queen a person of interest in Baylee’s disappearance, and that there is "no known physical evidence that definitively confirms her possible death." She is now offering her own personally-funded $1000 reward for information about her daughter’s location. The rest of Micah Holsonbake’s body has not been recovered, though according to court documents, investigators believe Queen may have buried him in the hills near Taft, a rural area about 45 minutes west of Bakersfield. There have been no developments in the investigation of James Kulstad’s murder since 2018. Anyone with information is urged to contact the Bakersfield Police Department at (661) 327-7111, or the Kern Secret Witness program at (661) 322-4040. A reward of up to $10,000 is being offered for information leading to an arrest in this case. Ultimately, what really frustrates me about this case is that even after this avalanche of charges, so many questions remain unresolved, and not just what happened and who did it, but why. If the investigation concluded that James Kulstad’s death was unrelated to the disappearances of Baylee and Micah, who ordered his murder, and what was the reason? To what extent was the chiropractor involved with Queen and Vandecasteele’s trafficking racket? Was Sara Wedemeyer involved with Baylee’s disappearance, and if not, how’d she end up living with Matthew and expecting his child just two months after her “friend” went missing? Why did Sara and Matthew harass Baylee’s mother for months after the disappearance? More than anything, I’m still lost as to Baylee Despot’s motivation for any of this. Did she just find herself in too deep with no way out? Did she actively make the choice to become a gunrunner? Did Matthew, looking to settle a grudge against Micah, seek out a relationship with Baylee with the intention of using her to get to him? Did he kill her because she was cooperating with the cops, because she attempted to leave him, or because he was just a sociopath who felt she was no longer useful? Or is there a chance that law enforcement knows more than they’ve let on? When investigators told Mrs. Parrent that Matthew isn’t a suspect in her disappearance, was that an indication that she may, in fact, be alive? Probably not. But at this point, anything is possible. Sources:
“‘Bakersfield 3’ member Micah Holsonbake was afraid of murder suspect Matthew Queen, became increasingly paranoid before he disappeared, documents say,” 6/17/20
*All Of These Villains, Protagonist Names and Random Movie and Location names are just my imagination*
Gregory Ricky. Gregory Ricky is the main antagonist of the computer animated film The City Of Ice Cream. Gregory is an evil crime lord who was willing to rob every bank and building in Ice Cream City and also on his way to kill 9 year old Cody Ray. Life: Gregory Marcel Ricky was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. His childhood is not known but what we do know is that he destroyed his school and destroyed buildings with his parents and committed crimes everywhere across the globe. He turned into a crime boss after his parents died. He took over the US military and Became the wanted person in USA. He got into the Ice Cream World after learning that it was in the middle in the Bermuda triangle. No one died there so all he did was trying to find it until he found a hole in the middle and landed there with his men and he ordered his men to find the city. When they found the city Both the city and crime syndicate had a war. During the final battle between Cody and Gregory. Cody had to run away from Gregory. Defeat: While Gregory was trying to find Cody. Cody came behind Gregory and he screamed his name and shot Gregory with ice cream machine guns 6 times before shooting Gregory to the head and Gregory falls to an ice cream machine and drowns.
Troy the toy master. Troy Quinn or his alter ego Troy the toy master is the main antagonist of the slasher horror movie The Eyes Of The Doll. Troy was an infamous serial killer who tormented his victims with his toys by doing ventriloquism with them before killing them and stuffing them into toys. A highschool student Tyler and his friends Max, Dora, Lilly, Alice and Jack had to investigate the store during midnight during summer vacation. Life: Obsessed with toys. Troy was born in Danbury, Connecticut. He was addicted to toys and even abusing himself. He moved to Pensacola, Florida where he killed people to make Toys. After Tyler and his crew got inside his factory they noticed that Troy was not only a toy maker but even more of a serial killing homicidal monster. Defeat: After Tyler's friends got out but Dora and Tyler left in the factory Troy decided to make them his new toys. After finding them Tyler accidentally tripped which countered Troy's attack and Troy was able to get back up and this time kidnapping Dora and Tyler ran after him. Troy shot Tyler in the arm and he did survived, Tyler threw a toy at Troy's head which released Dora as Troy landed on a toy crusher which he used to crush his broken toys. He landed on the crusher head first, Killing the insane homicidal toy maker and sending his puppet master soul to Hell. After Troy died. Dora told Tyler that she has never seen a nightmare of a man that she has encountered Dora was about to walk out. Tyler planted a kiss on Dora and they both closed their eyes. And after the evil toy maker died. Dora became Tyler's Girlfriend, Lilly became Max's girlfriend and finally Alice became Jack's girlfriend.
Lars Linden. Lars Linden is the main antagonist of the animated film Dora The Explorer and Boots The Monkey vs Odin's Revenge. Lars is a Norwegian-born Finnish-Swedish terrorist and Leader of the Stockholm Based Terrorist Group ''Odin's Revenge''. He is Dora's and Boots's true arch enemy. Linden was responsible for The Sweden's County Murders. He is also responsible for the Attack Of Odin. Attack Of Odin was an attack where Lars's empire attacked Russia to take out it's president and making it the Swedish nation for themselves named the Hills and Mountains of Thor. Norway was named their second nation named Ruins Of Asgard. and Finally they made Finland their native language after naming it as Odin's Kingdom. Life: Lars Olav Lauri Linden was born in Trondheim, Norway before moving to Gothenburg, Sweden. His parents were from a different country. Linden's mother was Japanese and his father was Canadian and Finnish. As he grew up he did attacks in Sweden and Norway because mercenaries killed his parents and he wanted revenge on the mercenaries. After he killed the mercenaries with his followers he didn't have enough revenge and decided to become a terrorist by killing every person in Scandinavia and America and Oceania people. except Finland. He attacked Dora's home Playa Verde after Boots warned her. Dora and Boots than had to walk to Lars's base before Lars makes the Rainforest along with Playa Verde his new nation. Defeat: After the base was destroyed Lars surrendered and requested for a life sentenced but everyone refused and they gave forgiveness. Dora along with Boots ran towards Lars and hugged him. Because of this Lars became the newest uncle of Dora. And the members reunited with their families and this made Lars to retire from terrorist jobs. In the end Dora visited her new uncle Lars again after the dissolution of his organization. He than told a story to Dora about a little bunny in a field with his friends before Dora's bedtime.
Dr. Vladimir Novocain. Doctor Vladimir Nikita Novocain is the main antagonist of the movie Return Of The Dead Men. He is a Russian scientist and hacker who resurrected the Dead Men. The Dead Men were Russians during World War 1 who attacked the Germans after having some sort of immunity to the gas that the Germans released at them. Vladimir had an operation in his laboratory where he attempted world domination. Life: Vladimir was born in an unknown region in Russia. His life is unknown and no one knows where his parents were on where he is from. All we do know is that his father was a terrorist and his mother was a bio-terrorist. He moved to the USA to kill the population with his operations. Defeat: After Vladimir was about to kill Jonathan Smith. Jonathan was shooting Vladimir, who was taking cover. Until Jonathan shot Vladimir in the stomach which forced Vladimir to fall in a vat of chemicals. Jonathan left the laboratory as the dead men incinerated to a million pieces.
Nicholas Morrison. Nicholas Max Morrison is the main antagonist of the computer animated film Jack Oscar: The Rise Of The Mercenary. He is falsely a world famous Canadian archaeologist and explorer. But turns out to be a blackmailing mercenary and unknown thief who is trying to find the Lost Crown Of King Long Jung (A Chinese Dictator Who Killed 1000 Men until his death from being killed by Swedish soldiers in 1799.) in order to get the most money than any other people in the world. Life: Born in the Canadian city of Toronto, Ontario. He became an explorer when his father found a treasure in the Finnish arctic circle that was in Finland. Nicholas's parents died in a car crash at age of 14 and he decided to create a mercenary organization called ''Commodore Library Corporation''. He stole 9000 treasures in the world without a person knowing that he was a mercenary leader who blackmailed people and than robbed their jewelry. He was never caught and never sent to prison. He is also the hero of Jack Oscar, Who is actually Nicholas's number 1 Fan. Defeat: After Oscar is being pushed off by Nicholas. Just as Nicholas was trying to get the crown he than realized that he had been tricked because he actually took handcuffs. He got out of there but behind him were ancient people who decided to execute him after the first man kicked him to the ground. He panicked and tried to crawl and run away but a man dragged him away as he yelled ''NO, PLEASE, JACK HELP ME!!!!'' but Jack rejected him and just said ''Don't you dare mess with the ancient people''. Nicholas kicked the soldier away and looked back just to see a giant monster that roared and he jumped back and got locked by the soldiers and he tried to escape but with no luck. Nicholas was dragged away to a lava pit. Jack than realized that his hero turned mercenary enemy was executed by the people by being hanged inside of a volcano to be burned to death.
Mr. Pete. Mr. Pete is the main antagonist of the children's computer animated comedy movie The Boy And The Bees. Mr. Pete James Harris is an abusive 64 year old cancer sickening store clerk/retired exterminator from Chicago, Illinois who hates bees and even his neighborhood boy Jake who likes and loves bees. His plan was to kill all the bees to become rich. Life: His life is unknown, But the only thing that happened in his life was when he was at the age of 49. In that age he was diagnosed with Hepatitis Skin Cancer which caused a tumor to grow in his butt (Which was his main spot that was weak). The cancer infected his organs including his stomach, heart, lungs, brain, nerves and his skin. Defeat: After Jake and Grover went on a war between Pete. Jake threw some very wild swelling plants at the pants of Pete. As the plants grew up and up and up and right towards his crotch. After they bit his crotch, Pete was in a lot of pain. He just squealed and dropped on his knees as Jake was able to sting him in his tumor which infected him. He than passed out as Doctors came and took him to the hospital for check up. He returned back to Jake's house but this time differently. He was even more friendlier as he explained to Jake that he recovered from his cancer and visited Jake's family.
Luigi Tony Domino. Luigi Tony Mark ''The Gamble Boss'' Domino is the main antagonist of the crime drama film ''The Gamble Murders'' he is the leader and boss of the Domino crime family, a criminal family that has done crimes like murder, mass murder, arms dealing, drug dealing, blackmail, sabotage, trespassing, abuse of power, assassination, terrorism, alleyway mugging and bank robbery. Luigi is the highest of the FBI's most wanted list because of his crimes. Luigi's henchmen include the co-leader Mario ''The Boss's son'' Domino, the defence director Thomas ''The Barrier'' Navajo, The head of the Assassins, Murderers and Terrorists, Tyler ''The Killer'' Evans, The hacker, heist planner, Weapons dealer, Drugs dealer and blackmailer Joe ''The Brains'' Aaron and finally the head of the sabotage, heist crew, security and muggers Jimmy ''The Boss'' Cunningham. Defeat: Luigi's mansion was in a battle against Jason Harrison and the police, Luigi and Mario were able to get to his helipad in order to see their henchmen die due to the bullets and even saw Jason fight Tyler. Tyler was defeated after Jason shot him in the head with his shotgun. As Mario and Luigi were trying to flee, Jason and his brother Jack (Who Luigi Kidnapped) arrested Mario and Luigi and sent to life in prison for their crimes they have committed. Before Luigi died of suicide by hanging himself 4 days later after Mario suffered a heart attack and died
Odin. Odin *real named CJ Harrison* is the main antagonist of the Tyler Minamoto trilogy's episode 1 of first season named ''Rise Of The Nordic Gangster'' . He is a 26 year old supreme overlord and leader of the Norse themed African-American street gang The Sons Of Odin. He was the first target of Japanese-American unidentified assassin Tyler Minamoto. Life: CJ Thomas Harrison was born in an African-American family. He is of Nordic ancestry. He was born in Brooklyn, New York in July 1st 1995. His father was a tattooed bodybuilder and his mom was a stripper who gave lap dances to his father. After they died in a drive-by shooting in LA (Where They Moved) Odin became a gang leader after getting tattoos and gangster like clothes. He started the group in the LA streets of LA. He laundered money and trafficked drugs especially cocaine, heroine, marijuana and narcotics. His gang also committed murder, treason and robbing money. CJ was once arrested for money looting and heroine deal in Las Vegas and he was sent 29 years in prison but his crew freed him and the police never found him in Nevada's prison after he escaped with 10 other prisoners who joined his gang. CJ was never found anywhere in the USA but the place where he currently in the little towns and gang areas of LA. Defeat: Tyler Minamoto entered his mansion after killing silently his guards and the other members before ending CJ's life after a 29 minutes of fighting and smashing his head with a hammer. As Minamoto goes out of the area and drives away with his motorcycle.
Simon Norton. Simon Norton is the main antagonist of the crime thriller movie The Lights Covered In Blood Massacre. Simon Norton was a bartender who committed a crime called The Lights Covered In Blood Massacre, a crime which happened in 2022 in Toronto Ontario, Canada when 64 year old gambler and drug lord Simon Norton committed the deadliest mass shooting in Canada history when he entered a Toronto bank with shotguns, assault rifles, pistols and explosives before being caught by American man Ryan Smith. Life: He was born in Las Vegas, Nevada by Icelandic mother and Bosnian father. Simon as a little kid survived a car accident, murder and mass shootings. He committed the mass shooting because he thought that the Canadians hated America although they didn't so he hated Canada so much that he decided to murder the people in Toronto before taking his own life by shooting himself in the head or exploding himself. Defeat: After killing 286 Canadians inside the bank. He decided to commit suicide but American immigrant Ryan Smith attacked him and he challenged him in a duel before being badly injured. he was the only person who got injured during the shooting. Then Mr. Norton started a rampage against the police by killing 9 of them before Smith got on to Norton's position and pushed him off. After being arrested he was sent to life in prison before taking his own life by shooting himself in the throat after trespassing and taking a shotgun from a police officer.
Michael O'Neal. Michael O'Neal is the main antagonist of the computer animated movie Heaven With The Chance Of Candies. He a world famous Scientist and is the CEO of the company Live Life CO. But he is actually a terrorist and mercenary *After he betrayed John*. Life: Little Is Known about O'Neal's Life but what we do know is that he founded Live Life CO at the age of 27 years old. He is best known as the inspiration and hero of inventor John Franklin. Defeat: After Michael tried to steal the JF-CR (John Franklin's - Candy Depositer) but John was in there first and Michael knocked him out and ordered his men to kill John. But John was very good at martial arts so he defeated them so Michael decided to kill John with his martial arts so they had a duel of Michael Arts (Mix of Karate, Judo, Jujitsu, Capoeira, Ninjutsu, Boxing, Kickboxing and Sambo) against Shaolin Kung Fu. Unfortunately John's Kung Fu moves were too strong for Michael to counter so he fell 10000 feet off the air when John Kung Fu threw him off the cloud and the device is disabled and Michael survives the fall until he gets shocked when the crystals fall on him and he dies of his injuries from the crystals. As Jason takes his device back home to his home at Los Pianolas as he says goodbye to his former hometown.
Visit Disneyland Visit Disneyworld G̶e̶t̶ ̶D̶o̶w̶n̶ ̶T̶o̶ ̶A̶ ̶C̶o̶m̶f̶o̶r̶t̶a̶b̶l̶e̶ ̶W̶e̶i̶g̶h̶t̶ Have a GF Have a BF Get a blowjob from a boy Get a blowjob from a girl Have sex with a girl Have sex with a boy Get a handjob from a girl Get a handjob from a boy Kiss a boy Kiss a girl Attend Royal Rumble Attend Wrestlemania Attend NXT Takeover Attend Summerslam Attend Survivor Series Attend Money In The Bank Suck a cock Eat a girl out Eat Salmon Find a true friend Fall in love Have someone fall in love with you Wrestle at least one professional match Be trained to wrestle Learn at least one martial art Wrestle for at least one major promotion Get at least 100K subscribers on Youtube (Bonus: 500K, 750K, 1 Mil) Release a music album Write and sing at least one song live Meet and have a conversation with Shane Dawson Go surfing Learn to ride a bike Learn to skateboard G̶o̶ ̶O̶n̶ ̶A̶ ̶W̶a̶l̶k̶ and a run Completely beat your FB addiction and stop being so toxic Learn to speak up for yourself more Swing at a park R̶e̶a̶d̶ ̶A̶ ̶F̶u̶l̶l̶ ̶B̶o̶o̶k̶ Go to a movie theater with friends, alone and with a boyfriend Be happy with your physical look Be happy with your personality Go to a barber shop Work out at a gym Get your teeth fixed Get your toes fixed Eat true Ramen Eat wacky doughnuts (Light Blue w/ Dark Blue, Pink & White Sprinkles) Visit SixFlags Ride a rollercoaster Stay at a hotel alone, with friends and with a boyfriend Go to a wrestling event with mom Buy mom some great presents Get a job and keep it for at least a year Backpack for at least three weeks Travel to Canada (Toronto, Montreal) England (London, Brighton & Birmingham) Ireland (Dublin, Bray County Wicklow) New Zealand, Australia (Melbourne, Sydney) every US State, France (Paris), Japan (Tokyo), Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden, Rome, Barcelona, Bali, Dubai & Rio De Janiero Visit Nash Elementary & Redwater Middle School Fly in a plane Eat Sushi Eat Lobster Try Miracleberry & Sweet Defeat (preferably with mom) Eat at Subways, Five Guys, Andy's Frozen Custard, Dairy Queen, Baskin Robbins, Cold Stone, Cheesecake Factory, Firehouse Subs, Jack In The Box, Carls Jr., In N Out, Denny's, IHOP, Panda Express, Chipotle & McDonalds Eat at an old school diner Have a conversation with Virginia Steen Attend a Raw Attend a Smackdown Meet and have a conversation with Kevin Owens Attend an NXT Eat Poutine Own and design your own home Raise A Little Boy Make my own mozzarella sticks Sleep on a water bed Build a flower garden Have a board game night with friends Play WWE Monopoly Go technology free for a week Finish school (maybe) Play modded Minecraft Play Happy Wheels, Super Meat Boy, Fusion Frenzy 2, Adventure Time Explore The Dungeon and Duck Bumps with America Eat BootyOs Eat Marshmallow Only Lucky Charms Try every kind of apple T̶r̶y̶ ̶D̶i̶e̶t̶ ̶A̶&̶W̶ ̶R̶o̶o̶t̶ ̶B̶e̶e̶r̶ E̶a̶t̶ ̶B̶a̶s̶i̶c̶ ̶4̶ ̶C̶e̶r̶e̶a̶l̶ Try A Fleshlight Shoplift something Attend a church ceremony Use a Bidet Toilet Try Alcohol (only when pretty old) Try Weed (only when pretty old) Go to a party Use a Hot Tub Go to a concert Go to a beach Make homemade pizza Make homemade ice cream Go to a fair Go to a carnival Eat wacky pancakes Have a threesome (bonus points if you get the gender grand slam) Get a tattoo Kiss a boy Kiss a girl Raise a cat Drink every kind of milk Bake an Apple Pie Go to therapy Stay at the 4 seasons Stay at a holiday inn Go to a spa Try LSD/Acid (not until pretty old) Get checked for autism Watch every Disney movie Go to a doctor Teach a class Read every Goosebumps book Ride a train Play Frisbee with a group Play Dodgeball with a group Play SD: HCTP Ride in a helicopter Go on a road trip w/ friends Shower in a waterfall Celebrate New Years Eve in Times Square Donate blood See the Aurora Borealis Run a race Great Wall Of China Colosseum Rome Great Barrier Reef Visit a Castle Hotel Go to a haunted hotel w/ mom Eat at a 5 star restaurant Celebrate St. Patricks Day in Ireland Fly first class Play laser tag Play paintball Ride in a limousine Write a book (preferably a horror book) Send a message in a bottle Attend Halloween Horror Night at Universal Studios (preferably in Orlando) Go on a luxury cruise w/ boyfriend Have a proper mall day (preferably w/ someone) Properly play the piano live Go on a walk in the pouring rain Eat an Ice Cream Sundae with one of every flavor (preferably w/ friends) Try Giant Ribs (Terry's Black BBQ Austin TX) Try Junior's Cheesecake (NYC) Make a homemade Cheesecake Try Boozy Ice Cream (Tipsy Scoop, NYC) Eat a Giant Pizza Slice (Pizza Barn, Yonkers NY) Eat edible cookie dough (DÕ, NYC) Eat a fried mozzarella tower (Robke's County Inn, Long Island NY) Eat Cookies By The Bucket (Sweet Martha's, Minnesota State Fair) Eat from a chocolate fountain Eat Fried Mac N Cheese Burgers (The Bedford, NYC) Try Tiramisu Eat Gooey Sticky Buns (King Street Kitchen, NYC) Eat Levain Cookies (Levain Bakery, NYC) Host a giant firework show Pay a stranger's restaurant or grocery bill Ride on a motorcycle with a trusted person Make a family recipe book Make a wish by a fountain Host a dinner party Go to Hershey Park and make a candy bar Bounce on a trampoline Run a great wrestling event Shave entire body except head Try Steak Tartar Try real Maple Syrup Waffle Iron something Eat a giant fruit salad (maybe w/ someone) Finger a girl Give a boy a handjob Volunteer at a soup kitchen Properly hug a friend (preferably a boy) Ride down Route 66 Sleep in a hammock Try yoga Go to La Tomatina in Buñol, Spain Have a picnic in the Grand Canyon Walk a life size maze Eat dry crickets Visit Dracula's Castle in Transylvania, Rome Try Cotton Candy, Pink Lemonade, Banana, Caramel & A&W Root Beer Pop Tarts Try every Ice Cream Truck treat Eat fancy Ice Cream Make a homemade meatball sub Eat a fresh coconut (St Lucia) Eat Apple Fries (Legoland, California) Try a Funnel Cake Try a Cake Pop Creme Brulee Donut (Donut Bar, Las Vegas) Rainbow Chocolate Chip Cookies (Baked In Color, NYC) Eat a Churro Have a full birthday Host a Thanksgiving Dinner E̶a̶t̶ ̶A̶ ̶C̶a̶r̶a̶m̶e̶l̶ ̶A̶p̶p̶l̶e̶ Bonus: Home, Professional Eat a candied apple Commentate at least one wrestling show Gamble at least $1000 (preferably in Vegas) Go to a fortune teller Save a life Break a bone Go to jail for at least a week Shoot a gun Shoot an arrow Play bingo with friends Do a juice cleanse (Maybe) Go skydiving Cuddle with a boy Hold hands with a boy (walking, sitting, in bed) Go to a water park Design custom clothes Live in a roach free environment for at least 9 months Have an all night gaming session with friends Have a sleepover with my child Meet at least one of the Friends Host a tug of war tournament Become fully acne free Reconnect with Ariyana Valerio, A'Zon Marquez Get fully interviewed Go diving into a pool Play tennis for real Play volleyball at a beach Play the lottery Eat Fancy Chocolates (Norman Love) Try an XXX bag of Hot Cheetos Make at least 5 GMM foods Watch an entire Shane video with an exact order replica Eat a Ghost Chip and Ghost Pepper Make homemade Mac N Cheese Eat Gold Play Trouble with Mom again Eat and rank every fast food mozzarella stick Go Ice Skating Go roller blading Go Bowling Have a lucid dream Eat an Ice Cream Cake Ride a mechanical bull Make A TieDye Shirt Blow Giant Bubbles Play Flashlight Tag Play Hide & Seek w/ a group of friends Build a giant fort Play Cuphead (preferably w/ America) Visit an amusement park Go on a date Bob for apples Try Marmite & Vegimite Eat Honeysuckle w/ America Play Spongebob Plug N Play, Left 4 Dead 2 & Sonic Tennis Have a professional fight Play soccer with a group Attend a UFC show Do Stand-Up Comedy Make and Cast a TV Show Eat At Vargas Fruteria w/ Mom Go To Hillside Popcorn w/ Mom Finish My Name Is Earl Read and Watch Stand By Me F̶i̶n̶d̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶I̶c̶e̶ ̶C̶r̶e̶a̶m̶,̶ ̶D̶i̶n̶e̶r̶ ̶&̶ ̶P̶r̶i̶s̶o̶n̶ ̶F̶r̶o̶m̶ ̶H̶e̶l̶l̶ ̶E̶p̶i̶s̶o̶d̶e̶s̶ Read The Guide To Being A Goddess Try Hot Apple Cider Try Apple Cider Vinegar Try Virtual Reality Try Perfect Soap Combo Go camping w/ BoyFriend, Friends and or America Play Darts Bake Homemade Banana Coconut Macadamia White Chip Muffins Try A ManBar Make Homemade Soap Try LaCroix Try Every Flavor Of Top Ramen Try Almond Cheese Try Cherry Cola, Candy Corn, Banana, Cotton Candy, Root Beer Float, Swedish Fish & Marshmallow Crispy Oreos Try A SevenUp Bar Have A Picnic Try Extra Mint Chip, Root Beer Float, Key Lime Pie & Strawberry Shortcake Gum and Dr. Pepper & A&W Gum w/ America Try Boba Tea Climb A Tree Give To A Homeless Man Pick Up Litter Eat At Burton's Creamery w/ Mom Try Blue Moon Ice Cream Try Real Taffy Do The BeanBoozled Challenge w/ America Make At Least 3 Tasty & ScrumDiddlyUmptious Recipes Each Play The LeftRight Game
The 23rd season of the Big Brother: House of Temptation series is here! This season on BBHOT, 16 brand-new and unique strangers entered the game looking to either win the money, make a name for themselves, or get some publicity. Using the BB21 template, this season was full of twists and turns that rocked the player's games. What will go down in the BBHOT books, find out now! Also, I apologize to all the supporters of this series. I have been very busy with school and a lot of assignments and other things, so my free time is much more limited. I hope you understand and I'll pick up the pace moving forward if I can! My apologies and thank you for making this series so great! View the season down below and give your thoughts! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- View the season here -SEASON 23 LINK View this seasons voting chart -S23 VOTING CHART ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ THE CAST: Michael Hale, 37, Secondary Teacher - u/Nahuelfire39
Despite being 37 years old, Michael is constantly controlled by his parents because of their overprotection of him since childhood and they think they are doing "the best" for him, which includes his personal life, his job, even his marriage was arranged! Because of this, Michael is often cowardly about his decisions and how others might receive them. He now thinks that only force is understandable and that a person should be judged by his ability and not his gender. This does not prevent Michael from being kind and genuine towards other people and trying to at least make friends. In another part of his life, he is fine, living decently with his husband and siblings.
A 3 AM YouTuber who arrived late to the trend, Alexa has a tendency to flex her belongings when no one really cares. She was recently involved in a scandal where she faked her boyfriend's death, causing endless amounts of controversy. Her sub count is dropping significantly every day, so she joined to help gain her popularity (relevancy) back. Being on BBHOT could help her to do so, and win some money as well.
Michael had dreams of being a musician since he was a kid, and had the drive to learn his craft to the best of his ability.... however, the 80s weren't really the most popular time period for french horn players, so he could never get that big break he always thought he'd have, despite getting a music degree. As a result, he grew old and bitter, resenting modern genres of music like rock and rap, as they are what took his career away from him. He does marching band at a few high schools and basically treats it like it's prison camp due to how bitter he is, and he eventually grew to love his job; torturing kids like him into giving up on their dreams. However, he still hates his life, as he recently had to pick up another school to teach to pay for his ungrateful wife's Netflix, so he needs money somehow.
Sonia enjoys traveling, trying new restaurants, and tinkering with her 1972 Cutlass Supreme. She enjoys boxing, sweating, and being with her close friends. Sonia describes herself as self-reliant, bitchy, and big-hearted. She indicates that, although she seems guarded, she is in fact a lover and nurturer underneath the surface. In her spare time, she enjoys singing in her band. She believes her extensive world travel, endurance, ability to somewhat read people, and understanding of the human condition will be skills that will help her on Big Brother.
Even though she may come across as sweet and kind-hearted – and she is – she has a spirit of steel. A mere month after the trauma of losing her twins, she completed a marathon. Mara pours her heart into NGOs to make a difference and says she entered Big Brother: HoT not only to win, "but also to step into the shoes of those who have absolutely nothing; no bed, no food, no warmth, no shelter".
Mac grew up in the Bronx and learned how to not only have thick skin but also how to have some street smarts too. He was a basketball star in High school and was recognized in College as a great player for Basketball too. Now, he teaches others how to play the sport he loves. He's ready to show Big Brother how he does it and to make the black community proud.
Jessa Blanchard, 29, Beauty Salon Owner - u/SilverOwl24
Jessa has been underestimated most of her life. Growing up she was overweight and had low self-esteem. However, once her grandmother inspired her that no matter how you start, it's never too late to start over and make a new change for yourself. Since then, she lost weight, made everlasting friendships, and even opened up her own hair studio/salon. She's going into BB, expecting to be underestimated, but is looking forward to pulling the rug out from under them.
Ever since he was born, Douglas' family taught him how to be a ''gentleman''. Be the kind of person that people are proud to call their friend. Always help others when they need your help, always be there for people. He decided to become a nurse, wanting to help in the medical field as he always had a knack for it. Douglas has dedicated his life to helping others and hopes to come on BB and use this platform in order to shine a light on big and important matters. He doesn't necessarily care about winning, but he'll give it his all. Douglas has overcome a lot of challenges in his life, and he's ready to face this one head-on.
Karl has always loved the outdoors. He's a very outdoorsy kind of guy, loving adventures of all kind. As a kid, Karl was always a bit of an oddball and an off-beat. Despite it, however, he always managed to surround himself with a good, close group of friends. Karl is an only child, and his mom sadly passed away a short while after he was born. Ever since a young age, he had to work in order to help his dad with paying their bills and taking care of their house, which made him quite responsible, surprisingly. Due to his love for adventures, Karl ended up signing up for Big Brother and was accepted as he was seen as an interesting character. How well will he fare?
There’s always that one girl in high school who was the most popular but was also the most mean. This was Gigi in high school. Her parents are millionaires and made sure that she was set for life. Her only worry is what shoes to pick out the next day. She wanted to play Big Brother because she loves to manipulate people. Maybe her insecurities will be shown this season.
Bertha has grown up being made fun of for her looks, which is something she can’t control. This has hardened her and turned her into the strong woman she is today. Now, she serves middle schoolers during lunchtime. She wants to make a name for herself, and this is her chance to do so. She’ll do anything to get this money.
Brett Herman, 28, Professional Poker Player - u/Twig7665
Brett was born into wealth in a mansion in Texas. He lived through most of his childhood in that wealth until his father was caught up in a huge scandal that left him without money, so at age 17, Brett ran away to Las Vegas where he could begin a new life. He started playing poker in the streets, and when he was old enough to gamble, he went to a casino and stunned his opponents by winning the first time he played for money. Soon, people began to realize his talent, and he played in his first professional poker game at the age of 22. Once again, he won, and he became one of the most successful professional poker players in history. This fame caused him to grow arrogant and become a huge jerk, even to his manager. Now rich again, he isn't playing the game for money, he's playing the game to try something new and to gain another title.
Giovanni "Dr. Moreno" Moreno, 52, Doctor - u/Twig7665
Giovanni, better known by his moniker Dr. Moreno, was the son of an Italian immigrant, and he had a mostly normal childhood until his mother fell ill when he was nine. She died not long afterward, and the young Giovanni did not want to watch people die when he could help them, so he spent as much time as he could preparing to be a doctor in his teens, and when he was in his early 20s, he graduated from medical school and became a doctor, a role which he has held for almost thirty years now. He now has a family of his own, with a wife, three sons, and a grandchild. He is playing Big Brother for them.
Leo is a very smart person as he is a teacher but his real strength lies in his outgoing personality. He plans to create a majority alliance and stab them all in the back. This mix of skills is definitely a great thing for this game. The question is will he be able to pull off this strategy?
Sonja comes from a poor family and her life goal is to get rich. She devoted her childhood and teenage years to train like a gymnast. She got better and better over the years and is now very competitive. She plans to dominate the challenges and get to the end with sheer force in BBHOT.
A French-born Vietnamese child, Justine was brought up by a tiger mother and a father that she barely talked to nor cared for. Her mother would always try to push into the route of her choosing, Justine being a free spirit, hated her mother’s ideal future for her so she decided to run away at the age of 16. For the rest of her teen years, she moved from different locations and joined a “gang” where she managed to get money by doing many different things. She then decided to reinvent her image by going full goth and getting tattoos and piercings, something her mother would never approve of. She eventually got a job as a bartender and there she met a coworker with a very similar story to her. They instantly connected and became really close. She doesn’t keep in contact with any of her family members except for her brother from time to time and is completely fine with that.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ OVERVIEW AND THOUGHTS OF THE GAME AND HOUSEGUESTS (Obvious spoilers!) Opening: 16 brand-new houseguests enter the house of temptation for our 23rd season! This season is not like others, there are an extreme amount of twists ready to shake up this game! The banishment and opening eviction are the first. Camp Director Twist: Evicted: Justine | In this brand-new twist, Douglas, Dr. Moreno, and Michael plead to be the camp director. By a close vote, this power goes to Michael! He chooses to banish Michael H., Justine, Mac, and Sonja. Michael H, then Mac, then Sonja reenter the house. Justine is the first evictee of the season. This is so sad! She may get the chance to come back in! ;) Week 1: Evicted: Mac | After the opening eviction, Michael H. is the new HOH after being banished! He targets Brett and Mac in his nominations, but Brett pulls out the first veto! This forces Michael to put someone up, and he nominates Gigi. The house votes out Mac, but Justine returns and the camp comeback twist is in play! Michael K. has been dominating with power, and now has the nightmare power. He's definitely a big threat. Week 2: Evicted: Douglas | Wow! This was a great and intriguing week. Leo becomes the new HOH! He nominates the 2 players in the medical field, Dr. Moreno and Douglas. Dr. Moreno's veto pick Gigi wins, and he is saved! This causes Leo to make a big move by backdooring Brett. This is where the strategy comes into play. Brett makes a 6-person alliance and secures 4 out of their 5 votes to stay. He also gets Bertha's vote, which sends Douglas out and keeps Brett in for a blindside. This was a huge move and this could really change the season! I'm super sad Douglas left so soon though. Week 3: Evicted: Bertha | Michael is the new HOH, and puts up Alexa and Sonja. When players are picked, Brett activates his power. However, the same 3 houseguests are picked again! This is so funny and the odds of it happening are so low. This is definitely a memorable moment! Sonja saves herself by winning the veto! Michael K puts up Bertha, leaving the final 2 duo on the block. The house almost unanimously decides that Bertha should be evicted. After being eliminated on day 1, Justine returns to the game like nothing happened! I can't wait to see how she plays. Week 4: Evicted: Leo | Alexa wins the HOH! Her HOH was not the best, as she had to nominate 5 people. She first tries to put up Sonja and Michael K, but Michael activates his power, forcing her to then nominate Gigi and Leo. Gigi picks Sonja to play, and Sonja wins the POV. Alexa puts up Brett. In a tie, she evicts Leo. This was not the best move, because the alliance now has the potential to take the full majority. Good move on Michael's part, he's been a big threat in this pre-jury phase. Week 5: Evicted: Michael K | Sonja is able to clutch all of the power for the week! This allows her to be able to take a big threat, Michael, out. She puts Alexa up as a pawn and is able to lock the nominations and unanimously send him home. Michael K really had a big impact on the first part of the game. This leaves room for some people to step up and do the same. Week 6: Evicted: Justine | Sonia wins the HOH, and misses on a move. She nominates the duo of Gigi and Dr. Moreno, and Gigi saves herself. This allows Sonia to potentially nominate someone big, but she nominates Justine and she goes home obviously. This season has such great potential and the fact that an alliance is running it right now annoys me. And now Justine, someone who wasn't a big threat at all, is the first in the jury. Week 7: Evicted: Michael H. | Another outsider heads to the jury this week, as Brett becomes the new HOH. In the field trip twist, Karl stays safe while Gigi goes on the block. There was no way she would've gone home anyway, and Sonja ends up saving her. This leaves Michael to be the next evicted player. I hope there can be a power shift next week to switch up the season. Week 8: Evicted: Sonia | Gigi takes all the power for the week, and gets Sonia evicted. This was a predictable week, as Sonia is probably the biggest threat out of the outsiders left. Gigi and Sonja are doing great with comps, but I'd like to see some new things happen. Hopefully, Jessa can win herself a comp since her power wasn't used. Week 9: Evicted: Jessa | She was one of my favorites going into the season, so I'm really bummed she didn't pull through as an underdog. Brett wins HOH in another predictable scenario. Jessa wins the prankster and puts up her other outsider, Alexa. This is a terrible move. She could've at least tried to put someone in the alliance up. Brett, Gigi, and Sonja are steamrolling through the game right now. Week 10: Evicted: Brett | Karl wins his first comp with the HOH, and goes after Brett instead of trying to get Alexa out. Sonja wins yet another veto and locks the nominations. The vote ties and Karl gets Brett out. This is definitely a big move for his game and sets himself up nicely for the double eviction. Week 10 Double Eviction: Evicted: Dr. Moreno | Dr. Moreno is next out the door after Gigi wins the HOH. I was expecting another person in the alliance to go, but the fact that Gigi got Moreno out after being so close to him the whole game was crazy! Sonja wins the veto (again) and Dr. Moreno is blindsided in a 2-1 vote. Sonja has now won 7 vetoes, which is the record for this series! She's not one of my favorites on the cast, but these comp wins are crazy and I have to give her credit! Sonja and Gigi have won every POV this season except for one. Week 11: Evicted: Mara | This really surprised me! I thought Mara and Karl were a tight duo. I think he really wanted Sonja to leave, but she won her 8th POV and got to the final 4. I'm sad that Mara is out because of her backstory, but all of the final 4 have worked hard to be there. Competitions will probably decide who gets to the end and wins. Week 12: Evicted: Alexa | Sonja wins her 10th competition, and keeps her closest ally safe. Gigi then wins the veto, and make a fake alliance with Alexa before evicting her. I feel like that was unnecessary, but that's just who Gigi is. I like Karl the most out of this final 3, but Sonja really deserves to win. Alexa was a really cool personality to have on this season and I'm surprised she made it so far. Final 3: Evicted: Karl | This is no surprise. I knew this final HOH was going to Sonja, and Karl having a fight with her just sealed his fate even more. Sonja also forms a random alliance with Karl before evicting him, which is really not necessary. They just love to manipulate. Sonjia 100% deserves to win this season. She has the most competitions wins out of any houseguest in BBHOT history, even though the game is not all about comps. Finale: Runner-Up: Sonja | I swear this happens every time someone should win over the other. The jury was very bitter and she only received 3 votes. Sonja won almost every veto this season along with Gigi, and I really think she should have won. Gigi did make more moves, though. Her comp win record will take a lot to be beaten! I wasn't expecting that to happen this season! Winner: Gigi | Gigi was one of my least favorite on the cast. Seeing everyone's backstories compared to her's made me not like her as much and that she didn't deserve to win. She did play this game well, and she really used her manipulation skills to the best. Her and Sonja were one of the strongest duos to play and even though it may have been boring, watching them dominate the season was very cool as well. Fan Favorite: Mara | Yay! She didn't have a big impact on the game, but her backstory was very wholesome and she really deserves this! Possible for an all-star or returnee season: Sonja, Karl, Mara, Brett, Jessa, Justine, Alexa Notable Stats! Most Wins: Sonja, 11 wins (#1 record) Most Times Nominated: Alexa, 6 nominations Most Votes Against: Brett, 13 votes Times Veto Was Used: 7 times Final Thoughts:I really loved this cast! I was super excited to see them all play and was hoping someone deserving would win the money. The move that Brett made to save himself during Week 2 was amazing, but that alliance kind of ruined the season. I wanted to see power shifts and big moves, but it was repetitive. There were still some great moments though, like Brett using his power and getting the same 3 players, and Sonja breaking the comps record. It wasn't a bad season, but it could've gone better! I hope to see some of these players back under better scenarios. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ PAST SEASONS: Season 1 Season 2 Season 3 Season 4 Season 5 Season 6 Season 7: All-Stars Season 8 Season 9 Season 10: Newbies vs. Veterans Season 11 Season 12: Couples Season 13 Season 14 Season 15: Coaches Season 16 Season 17 Season 18: Generations Season 19 Season 20: Strength vs. Skill Season 21: All-Stars 2 Season 22 Season 23 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Season 24 is coming! This will be an all-newbie season! Season 25 will not be all newbies ;) Leave thoughts and suggestions down below! ~Brought to you by u/PJCGames~
Welcome to Eviction Notice, Season One! Each week, houseguests will be evicted until two remain, where a jury of evicted houseguests will select the winner of the $500,000 prize! To kick off our debut season, let’s check out the cast! •Clarence Velasquez (47, Physicist. Henderson, NV) u/Nahuelfire39 A man on his journey from rags to riches, trying to prove to those who have discouraged him in the past that he’s intelligent, and can manage on his own. https://img.faceyourmanga.com/mangatars/1/716/1716429/large_1853105.png •Joo-Won Joo (27, Waitress. San Francisco, CA) u/Nahuelfire39 A first generation immigrant, Joo-Won has came into this game with headstrong goals of winning to spoil her parents who have given her the life she has today. https://img.faceyourmanga.com/mangatars/1/716/1716429/large_1750220.png •Shawn Voldoski (23, Drummer. New York, NY) u/swoldow A hard working, manipulative underground artist that is more than willing to sabotage someone close to him for his own personal benefit. https://i.ibb.co/NxV3kjShawn-Voldoski-1.png •Natalia Grey (24, Audio Mixer. Los Angeles, CA) u/swoldow Seeing this as an opportunity to get her name out there as a professional audio mixer, Natalia has ambitions of turning this into her big break. https://i.ibb.co/rMtBkBX/Natalia-Grey-1.png •Chester Richardson (67, Retired Naval Officer. Columbia, SC) u/swoldow A veteran family man that joined the season as a discovery journey to learn more about himself, other than what he’s been taught to think. https://i.ibb.co/mT6bz9c/Chester-Richardson-1.png •Devon Kelting (30, Professional Poker Player. Las Vegas, NV) u/SilverOwl24 Coming from the city of gambling, Devon is confident that his career as a Professional Poker Player has given him the skills to win. https://i.imgur.com/RYPfhFH_d.webp?maxwidth=640&shape=thumb&fidelity=medium •Kasey Rhonton (28, Attorney. Augusta, GA) u/SilverOwl24 A hard working women that brought her A-Game this season, and isn’t afraid to show her competition how much of a threat she is. https://i.imgur.com/gNcQWl2_d.webp?maxwidth=640&shape=thumb&fidelity=medium •Karl Pearson (42, Gardener. Dallas, TX) u/TDSwaggyBoy Nothing but a big, joyful goofball; Karl has the biggest heart of the season, and is ready to use that to his own advantage. https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/736169582221328446/760971100099837982/unknown.png •Tori Kane (27, Music Producer. Seattle, WA) u/TDSwaggyBoy Chock full of dedication and eagerness, Tori is living her best life! She plans on using her bold decision making to get her a well-deserved win. https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/736169582221328446/760972831390826557/unknown.png •Gianna Saunders (23, Retail Worker. Omaha, NB) u/prettylilrat Seeing this as an opportunity to get a jumpstart on her fashion career, Gianna is ready to be cunning enough for this money. https://img.faceyourmanga.com/mangatars/1/872/1872949/large_1870213.png •Michael Kim (25, Tattoo Artist. San Francisco, CA) u/prettylilrat A care free, kind hearted guy who came to play to bring home the prize in support of his family, whom he takes care of. https://img.faceyourmanga.com/mangatars/1/872/1872949/large_1870216.png •Cora Hernandez (46, Bank Teller. Albuquerque, NM) u/RickieXCX Planning on using this money to retire, Cora is ready to play. Though her rough exterior may get in the way of winning the grand prize. https://img.faceyourmanga.com/mangatars/2/123/2123999/large_1862939.png Welcome to the premiere of Eviction Notice! ________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Week One: As the houseguests enter the house, they all begin to mingle right away. Multiple alliances form between Chester and Shawn, Kasey and Tori, Chester, Kasey, Natalia, and Tory. Chester continues his early game social play, as he also finds himself creating another large alliance between himself, Kasey, Shawn, and Tori. Chester is definitely the most secure this week, as he ALSO aligns himself with Michael, being aligned with half of the house before the first HOTH even takes place. Just before the first HOTH competition takes place, Gianna and Natalia agree to work together and keep one another safe. The first HOTH competition takes place which requires mental strength. Chester nearly wins by surprise, but is cut short as Shawn wins the first HOTH! Due to it being early in the game, Shawn chooses to nominate Gianna and Devon for eviction, as he hasn’t talked to either of them all game. Gianna is clearly angry with Shawn, but Devon has accepted his fate. Michael, Clarence and Joo-Won are all selected to play in the Safety competition, which required physical and mental strength. Clarence had the shortest time, and wins the Safety competition! Clarence though chooses to not use the safety advantage, as he isn’t aligned with either nominated player. Joo-Won congratulates Clarence on his win, which causes them to bond slightly. During this time, Chester comes up with a fun game for the house to play, but excludes Cora, which causes her to lash out on him in front of the house. On eviction night, Devon campaigns to stay, while Gianna makes a joke as her speech. It’s clear the houseguests didn’t laugh, as Gianna is evicted by a 5-4 vote. Gianna calmly says her goodbyes, and leaves the house. During her eviction interview, the crowd is content with Gianna’s eviction over Devon’s. Week Two: Everything seems to be the same the following week, as the early game alliances seem to still be in tact. The HOTH competition was an endurance competition, in which Clarence beat out the rest of the competition with ease. He chooses to nominate both Natalia and Michael for eviction this week, two players whom he doesn’t feel close to at all. Only Natalia seems upset, as Michael is unphased. Karl, Kacey and Tori are selected to join the other three in the safety competition, which required needing a strong mental gameplay. Natalia lucked out in the competition, and was able to remove herself from the block; which forced Clarence to name Cora as her replacement nominee. Cora isn’t feeling confident, but contains her anger for her own safety. Kasey and Tori talk about who to evict, which only causes them to get into an argument, causing Kasey to lash out on her. After the argument, Shawn comes to comfort Tori, which seems to spark a showmance. During this time, pairs Chester and Clarence, and Natalia and Joo-Won bond over discussing what has happened so far. On eviction night, Cora states that Michael is more of a threat than her to keep, but Michael states that he is more loyal than Cora. By a vote of 5-3, Cora was evicted from the house. Without saying any goodbyes, Cora exited the house. During her eviction interview, the crowd cheers, as Cora was currently the most disliked houseguest. Week Three: It’s starting to become clear that the two majority alliances are running the house, along with Chester, Kasey and Tori being socially the safest players in the house. In a HOTH competition requiring mental capacity, Natalia pulled out the win! She chooses to nominate Shawn, who obviously aligned with other players, and Karl, a player she doesn’t feel close enough to. Shawn is very upset over Natalia’s decision, but Karl doesn’t seem too upset. Kasey, Devon and Chester all also get to play in the safety competition, which requires some mental and endurance abilities. Natalia throws the competition, having intentions to backdoor another player this week. Kasey wins the safety competition, going through with Natalia’s plan, and removing Shawn from the block; afterwards nominating Clarence for eviction. Clarence let’s put a sigh as he makes way to his chair, knowing he is getting backdoored. Shawn gets into an argument with Karl after the safety ceremony, and says an inappropriate comment that live feeders picked up on. The argument stresses Tori out, causing her to have a mental breakdown. During this, Joo-Won and Kasey bond over the craziness of this week. On eviction night, Clarence gives a short speech as he already knows what is coming, while Karl gives a long speech to save himself. By a vote of 6-1, Clarence was backdoored and is evicted from the house. He says his goodbyes to the house, before exiting. The crowd during Clarence’s eviction interview understood his robbery, but didn’t care for him too much anyway. Week Four: Though Tori is close with Kasey, she feels that Natalia and Chester are using her, and chooses to leave the alliance between the four of them. In the HOTH competition, endurance is needed to win. During the final three, Shawn makes a deal with Michael to keep him safe, and throws the competition. It came down to Karl and Michael, but Michael won the competition. Michael stays loyal to his deal and nominates two players whom he has no relationship with, Devon and Karl. Devon understands Michael’s decision, but Karl is clearly exhausted from being used as a pawn. Chester, Natalia and Kasey join the three in the safety competition which required physical and mental strength, in which Devon was lucky enough to pull out the win! It is obvious that Devon used the safety on himself, removing himself from the block. Michael names Kasey as his replacement nominee, who doesn’t seem too upset, believing she has the numbers to stay. After his run of power, the kind hearted Michael has a breakdown, and apologizes to the house for the hard decisions he had to make, which was well received. Kasey campaigns to remain in the competition, bonding with Natalia as she helps. On eviction night, Kasey gives a speech on why she deserves to stay in the house, while Karl who is clearly over it, makes a joke as a speech. The votes end up tying 3-3, which means Michael must choose a houseguest to evict. After giving a long, sorrow-some speech, Michael chooses to evict Kasey over Karl. He believes Kasey is harder competition over Karl. Kasey nods, and wishes everyone luck as she exits the house, and makes herself the first member of the jury. During her eviction interview, the crowd laughs as Kasey tries to defend her gameplay. It’s clear they saw her as a weak and delusional player. Week Five: Natalia and Chester’s alliance clearly is weakened with Kasey’s eviction, and falls apart directly after. During the HOTH competition, it comes down to who wants it more. It turns into a very close battle between Natalia and Shawn, but Shawn is the winner. During the nomination ceremony, Shawn states that he doesn’t like Karl, making the pawn his first nominee. Karl clearly doesn’t care, as he’s become used to this feeling. Shawn’s second nominee is Natalia, someone whom he hasn’t worked with at all. Chester, Joo-Won and Devon all have a chance to play in the safety competition that requires physical and mental abilities. Players are knocked out one by one, but it is Natalia who wins due to Joo-Won, Chester and Shawn throwing her the competition! It’s clear that Shawn is taking Natalia’s advice and using this as an opportunity to backdoor another player. Natalia removes herself from the block, causing Shawn to nominate Devon as her replacement nominee in an attempt to backdoor him. Devon understands, and takes a seat. Joo-Won, Tori and Natalia all bond together, until Devon approaches them accusing them of letting Shawn backdoor him. He ends up arguing with Joo-Won, which follows him leading into a mental breakdown. Finally, Karl campaigns to stay in the game, convincing other players to backdoor Devon. Devon’s short speech wasn’t enough to save him, as he was evicted by a 4-1 vote. Devon was disliked by audiences, who believe it is his own fault that he was evicted due to poor social play. Week Six: Chester has cemented himself as the safest player in the game so far, being the only houseguests to be apart of three separate alliances. The HOTH competitions comes down to mental strength, where Natalia is able to yet again pull out a win. She chooses to nominate Shawn who had nominated her the week prior, and Tori, despite having a small relationship with her, but using her as a pawn. Shawn is furious with Natalia’s decision, but Tori understands. Karl, Joo-Won and Chester all have an opportunity to participate in the safety competition which required physical strength, which Joo-Won was able to win. She states to both nominees that she won’t be using the power, as doing so wouldn’t benefit her own game. Shawn is very angry at this point, but Tori seems content, believing Shawn is definitely being evicted. Michael misses home, leading him to another mental breakdown, which he apologizes for later on. Joo-Won comforts him in his time of need, potentially sparking the second some-what showmance of the season. Tori gives a speech on why she deserves to stay, as Shawn rushes the other houseguests into voting. By a vote of 3-1, Shawn was evicted from the house. He explodes on the other houseguests before his exit. In his exit interview, the audience boos Shawn for his behavior within the house. Week Seven: With Shawn gone now, the only standing alliances seem to be between Chester with Tori, and Michael separately. Joo-Won and Michael’s showmance seems to begin to blossom, as the two have been spending a lot of time together. The HOTH competitions required great endurance, which brought Michael the win. The other players seem stressed as Michael is an emotional player, who nominated Natalia and Karl. He feels close to neither player, but also sees this as an opportunity to evict one of the strongest houseguests. Natalia is upset, but Karl has grown care free to being nominated. The remaining players, Chester, Tori and Joo-Won all get to play in the safety competition, which required physical and mental abilities. It was very close, but Michael managed to just barely beat Natalia for the safety competition. Michael states to both nominees that he likes them, but has chosen not to use the safety for his own game. Natalia is very upset as she feels this is her time to go, but Karl feels that he’ll just be used as a pawn once again. In a desperate attempt to stay in the house, Natalia bonds with all of the remaining houseguests, and gives a heartfelt story on why she needs the money for a jumpstart on her future. Michael better watch his back, as Natalia convinced the three voting players to save her, sending Karl home on a 3-0 vote. Karl seems thankful for this, and leaves the house in good spirits. During his eviction interview, the audience seemed to like Karl, but is happy to see the pawn finally reach his endgame. Week Eight: With the pawn of the game gone, it is clear to the other players that a big move is going to be made this week. Tori wins the HOTH competition, which only guarantees the safety of Chester, who found himself aligned with the girl early on. Tori sees this as an opportunity to evict someone from the power duo, nominating Michael and Joo-Won. Both have no reaction to this, but are worried about being separated. Both Natalia and Chester get to play in the safety competition, which required mental strength. It came down to Natalia, Michael and Joo-Won whom all seemed to be on the same page, throwing the win to Joo-Won. Joo-Won removed herself from the block, which forced Tori to nominate Natalia, who was shocked and expected Chester to be the nominee. Tori holds a house meeting, apologizing to the remaking players, stating that she HAD to make a decision. Natalia takes this meeting as an opportunity to campaign for players to keep her. On eviction night, viewers are shocked to see Joo-Won vote to evict her showmance Michael, over Natalia. Though, Joo-Won states that she has an unbreakable relationship with Natalia. The votes tie 1-1, which forces Tori to cast a vote to evict Natalia. Natalia is disappointed with her decision, and leaves the house quietly. During her eviction interview, audiences cheer for Natalia. They loved seeing the big moves she made each week, as well as the battle between the three strongest women in the game for power Week Nine: Joo-Won convinces Michael that she voted to evict Natalia, and that Chester betrayed Michael by voting him, which caused Michael to lose trust in Chester. The HOTH competition required mental strength, in which Joo-Won was able to come through and win. She stayed loyal to her showmance that seems to be a powerhouse in the Eviction Notice house, and nominated Tori and Chester, stating that this is a strategic decision. Chester understands, but Tori is furious, seeing this as an attempt to get her out. The safety competition once again required great mental strength, which Joo-Won was able to win! Joo-Won tells the nominees that she likes the both of them, but has chosen to not use the safety advantage. Tori is upset, as she believes that this is her week to go. Chester gloats to the other houseguests about how he floated to the final four with ease, and managed to manipulate half of the house, which gives the remaining players a bad taste of him in their mouth. Michael takes this opportunity to evict Chester by a 1-0 vote, leaving Chester shocked. He wishes everyone luck though, and exits the house. As Chester came out, audiences cheered for him. The host stated that Chester was mildly well received as a fan favorite, but his behavior towards the end of the game is what put him here. Finale: On finale night, all players are eligible to play to win the final HOTH. Tori seems to be a lone wolf at this point, as the strong showmance between Joo-Won and Michael is still standing. The first part of the HOTH competition requires endurance, and luckily is won by Michael. Tori starts to lose hope, as she now only has one last chance to fight to stay in the house. The competition required physical abilities, which benefitted Tori, causing her to win part two! In the final part of the HOTH competition, physical, endurance and mental strength is all required to win. Michael won the third part, which makes him the final HOTH this season! During the eviction, Joo-Won thanks both Tori and Michael for giving her such a great experience, while Tori makes a sarcastic joke. Michael is unsure of the right decision, but stays loyal to his showmance, making Tori the final member of the jury. The final two of Michael and Joo-Won are sat in front of the jury consisting of Kasey, Devon, Shawn, Karl, Natalia, Chester and Tori. Joo-Won states that she deserves to win due to winning more overall competitions, and managed to have a great relationship with each houseguests despite the decisions she made. Michael states that he played a better overall game, and stayed loyal to his alliance members the entire game. The jury members feel closer to Joo-Won and that she played a more honest, respectable game; and that Michael played with his emotions, despite him playing a more loyal game, they feel he threw the win to Joo-Won by keeping her over Tori. Tori voted for Joo-Won to win. Chester voted for Joo-Won to win, two Joo-Won. Natalia voted for Michael to win, two Joo-Won, one Michael. Karl voted for Michael to win, two Joo-Won, two Michael. Shawn voted for Joo-Won to win, three Joo-Won, two Michael. Devon voted Joo-Won to win, and with the majority, Joo-Won is the winner of Eviction Notice, Season One! The remaining vote(s) are, Kasey voted for Joo-Won to win. By a vote of 5-2, Joo-Won has won Eviction Notice. Chester, Tori and Natalia are all eligible to win Fan Favorite despite Joo-Won also being a fan favorite; Natalia winning the award! ________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Winner: Joo-Won Joo Fan Favorite: Natalia Grey Potential All Stars/Returnees: Clarence, Shawn, Natalia, Michael, Joo-Won Critics Rating: Critics rated this season a 7/10 rotten tomatoes. The most disliked houseguests were picked off early on, which pleased audiences everywhere. This season had big personalities which was entertaining for live feed viewers to watch how they each interacted with each other. Joo-Won was a deserving winner in the audience’s eyes, as they preferred her winning over Michael. This season gave us strong female competitors that were sportsmanlike and were willing to risk their own game making big moves. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Review: This season was fun to create! I felt the players this season all had really cool personalities, and it was nice seeing a friendly competition towards the end. I definitely think that Michael kind of threw Joo-Won the win by choosing to bring her into the finale other than Tori, but I would’ve been happy either way it went. Natalia was probably the fiercest player of the season, as she took out some of the stronger players, such as Clarence who most definitely was robbed. I feel like I say it every time, but I think we got some clear hero’s and villains from this season. Joo-Won definitely deserved her win, having a showmance and being best friends with two of the strongest players of the season, Michael and Natalia. That’s it for Season One! Thank you all for playing, this helps me release a lot of creative energy I have built up and I really enjoy seeing everyone create such exciting and detailed characters for me to base a story off of. Winner(s): S1: Joo-Won Joo S1: Joo-Won Joo Play the season here!: https://brantsteele.com/bigbrothetemplate/r.php?c=5b89uSua Have a great day everyone and thank you for playing!
Previous Issue | Next Issue: Loose Threads for the Beast
Over time, misconceptions had become increasingly common. Almost anyone could have a trick up their sleeve. It was easier than ever to affiliate with the misguided. However, she hadn’t felt that way at all. Allowing them to drape a robe of crimson colour over one shoulder, her clenched heart eased in tension. It was fastened beneath the opposite arm, and the remaining fabric flowed freely over the woman’s knees. One of many rehearsed practices that made every soul in the gathering feel welcome. A black stripe stood out against the blood-red material, she lifted a finger which ran along it. A community. Where belief overpowered sense of direction. They stood close together, as silent as mice. “Welcome, Ms. Gallagher.” The room was darkly lit. An assortment of candles here and there catered to the low brightness. Each candle was expertly placed around a bowl, upon a raised stone altar. Two individuals had separated from the group. One was a man, he had introduced the newcomer earlier. The other was a woman, her eyes gazing curiously into his as she furiously began whispering into the other’s ears. “I thought you were intelligent, Ferdinand. We were blessed with power and you let this fraud of a witch into our circle.” “My dear Grace. Our mistress knows better than us. Going against her would be more than foolish.” Shaking her head, the woman dressed similarly in crimson and black unsheathed a knife. The blade had not been wiped clean, dry blood gracing the steel. “Why does that make this... Ms. Gallagher so important?” Raising the weapon, she slit a cut that had recently healed enough to form a scab. Grace clenched her fist tightly, apparently, their mistress hadn’t gifted them with a heightened tolerance to pain. As if to remind the strange folk that they were indeed working towards their objectives. Somewhere, some place, she smiled with more wickedness than a tainted heart. As droplets of blood began to fall into the bowl, Ferdinand’s eyes glinted as vividly as the flames he stared into. “For a simple reason,” he replied, in a hushed tone. “No one doubts one of their own. She will love, she will feel, and she will certainly manipulate.”
★ ☆ ★ ☆ ★ ☆
A couple of days had passed since the discovery of the bodies. Whether that was something to be relieved about, she didn’t yet know. And Erik Highland made matters worse. The occult detective spent more time babbling about past relationships and bad decisions, rather than focusing on the problem at hand. It was a wonder that Zatanna had offered to meet him. The only reason she did was because reading police officers’ minds was unethical, to say the least. Erik’s notebook page was littered in incomprehensible writing. A few diagrams were also scattered between the many words. “These are some rough sketches I got from the times I was at the scene. Gotta say, our culprits gotta be some shithead with a magic chainsaw or somethin’.” His fingers pointed at each doodle, in order of the time of death. “All of these went down in the victims’ homes. Except for the last. Then again, bodies get dropped around all the time.” Zee understood that an officer of law enforcement had a specific approach towards these events. Even an occult detective had a similar way of thinking. She also knew that this was one of their less ordinary cases. It was the same each time. Until now. This was the first instance in which forces of darkness had fought back. This same darkness had been victorious not so long ago. It had managed to barricade every entrance into the conscience of an elderly man. A woman. Their child. Countless others. Powerful forces that weren’t common. Those of which had the necessary capabilities to leave the sorceress sporting a headache. Fortunately, sleepless nights were something Zee was rather familiar with. There wasn’t a great deal out there that could hurt her. Part of Zee was ashamed, she couldn’t perform a simple mind trick. There was a little fear, some hatred and a lingering rage she would dare not expose. She was also excited, a new challenge with which Zatanna could succeed in proving to herself that she was her father’s daughter. That was fundamental in her role as a protector. Not a hero. That was a word the media liked to use. To plunge the world into a safe cocoon and assure society that there was no harm coming to them. And using it against those very beings that worked to bring justice. In her opinion, news outlets were the paper form of twisted destiny. She looked around the library. There were evil souls in this very vicinity. It was late in the day and soon the few occupants would be asked to leave. Zatanna’s mind returned to the world of media. If one thing existed solely to draw people in, then couldn’t anoth-- It was as though a light bulb had flickered to life in her mind when Zatanna finally responded. “What if I was meant to find them?” The detective met the sorceress’ questioning gaze with a dumbfounded look. “You think some chump is sittin’ in their deck chair. With brandy and a list of names to throw your way. I didn't think attention seekin’ could be a crime. But here we are.” “Funny, detective,” she replied. “I’ll make a quip or two myself once people stop waking up in the next life without their hearts.” Erik cleared his throat. He found her to be quite… unusual. Provided she was in her own little world, he could give her the benefit of the doubt. Part of him just felt she could easily do whatever she liked. Yet, there she was, not seeing the bigger picture. Was the magician hiding something? Safe to say he didn’t trust her much. “What else would you like to know?” In response to her question, he gestured towards what seemed to be her diary. “The star. Sigil stuff that you uncovered at the crime scene. Figure it out yet?” It was one thing she did understand. And it made little sense. The White Arts were credited for their immeasurable purity and self-realization. Zatanna would know, it was one of her preferred styles of sorcery. “Yeah, that. Some call it white magic. More commonly known as the White Arts. In a nutshell, the basis of this segment of sorcery is to restore tranquillity within a disrupted system.” Considering someone had forcibly inked the symbol linked to white magic upon a dead man’s corpse, it wasn’t exactly purifying. It was a sick joke, one she ironically took to heart. The detective ensured the sigh didn’t escape his lips. Not that he was bored, or the fact that this was turning into a study session because of his own questions. How was Erik going to find a culprit with only this information? A family had passed, and countless more could die. And this witch was sat geeking out over her revision notes. “That doesn’t help…” Lips pursed, she gazed at him curiously. San Francisco’s officers were certainly nicer. It gave more reason to wonder why Zatara had enjoyed this place. Unlike her father, Zee didn’t prefer the atmosphere. No matter how magically tainted it seemed to be. The only thing between her and a fully-fledged argument with Erik Highland was her respect for what law enforcers did. “I have a particular way in which I approach these scenarios. Your opinion of that may be whatever you decide.” “We’ve been sittin’ here for ages. And you’ve kept me and the entire department in the dark ever since your magic fireworks display. That’s not what teamwork is.” Erik, on the other hand, was prepared with hostility. For all his lack of giving a shit, he wasn’t prepared to walk into another massacre. Zee looked at the sigils in her father’s journal. If she desired, they’d stir to life. Every ounce of supernatural charm would burst forth. Perhaps she’d mould that energy into a couple of tendrils and use them to shut his mouth. People needed protection. Zatanna wouldn’t factor an innocent into the collateral damage that came with magic and its destructive capabilities. She worked to deny the chance of casualties and enough families had already suffered. Something her colleague wasn’t realizing, in her opinion. Some in the world still saw magic as untapped science. Which was fine, until the wrong strings were pulled. That’s how people got hurt. Died. When Giovanni Zatara taught his daughter the sleight of hand, Zatanna learned more than making something disappear. She understood conveyance of emotion, the element of surprise, the effect of the trick. The most important thing she had taken was studying her observers. It was a lesson she had employed ever since. To look at the repercussions of the ‘trick’. And see how the onlookers acted. Whether it be shock, or pleasure, there was almost always a reaction. “I’m doing this for your safety. This is no horror film, it’s the real thing. Ghosts, hauntings, and all. Minus the costumes and makeup, that blood was real! The deaths. Were also real. So listen to me, detective,” she shot back with a raised tone that attracted eyes, closing the diary which resulted in a loud thump. “If you’re not going to acknowledge the way I work, I’ll damn well do this alone.” Sliding out of her seat, Zatanna turned to leave. “Fire. The sacrificial kind. No one tears out a heart and marks the body with the glyphs of supreme power, without needing something in return. Figure it out.” Watching her walk out, Erik fingered his temple. If he knew anything for sure, it was that mistakes were made. However, the answers were never planted before their eyes. Perhaps she was making the right call, but one thing had felt off to Highland. Zatanna felt she was being played. “You think someone’s toyin’ with you. Ain’t possible,” he muttered. They had called her. Requested her assistance. He was fairly certain this had nothing to do with her arrival. Surely this was nothing close to an elaborate scheme that wanted Zatanna Zatara in the spotlight. Just because she was known for that sort of thing, didn’t mean he’d believe it anytime soon. The buzz of his mobile phone diverted his attention. Lifting it, he answered the call. “Woah, tone it down, Duds. What’dya mean the lights are goin’ ham?” Cursing a few times, he eyed the vexed librarian before he packed his things into a shoulder bag and left the public institution. Erik spoke again and glanced at the few clouds in the gloaming. “Nothin’, boss man. The damn curator still thinks I’m tryna sleep inside here. On my way.” “What would Houdini do?” For a while, all she’d been doing was walking and thinking. Was the detective right? Could she have been more open with the others? If her therapist knew of this, and therapists who were magicians did usually end up knowing, then her next session was going to be tiring. Her insecurities could be pondered over later. Woodlands were known for their supernatural properties. Zee wasn’t completely new to nature-based mysticism, her mind running over the texts of druids and Celtic legends she had read in her younger days. Various species had a unique connection to the magic that the universe offered. Things she could exploit. Suddenly, it felt almost perfect that she’d found a place that housed that hidden magical property. Secluded and away from any distractions. She wasn’t looking for the oak tree’s strong link to healing abilities or protection spells. Neither was the Mistress of Magic interested in the death-inducing magic hidden in a certain species of Lilies. She knew quite a few people who would enjoy learning about that little fact. All Zatanna needed, to help with the tracking incantations she was about to perform, from this particular area of greenery was some soil. As she ventured down a path that was surrounded by trees, hedges, and Earth’s natural beauty, the homo magus crouched. Cupping the palm of her hand, she dug her fingers into the ground, plucking a fistful of dirt. Soon finding herself at an area in the park where the ground was flat, Zee smiled when she saw an assortment of small boulders of rock. It gave her space to work. Usually, the sorceress would voice her desires and find herself at her destination. This was different. If whatever that awaited her at that destination was capable of hurting her more than it had already, preparation was important. She was taking no chances. Nothing like nature-based divination to brighten up her day. Besides, she only had a single lead. And the best Zatanna could do with it was formulate a locating spell. Sacrificial fire. The drained blood of the fallen. Everything she had seen at the crime scene pointed to the summoning of a demon. She could retrace those steps, reverse the enchantment and gain a source of location. It was much easier said than done. This time, Zatanna would use nature’s fundamental forces to create a protective barrier. So her spells could finish completely without interruption. And achieve completion without her getting hit with a psychic blast. And give her a head start in saving a life. Wasn’t that the entire point? Zatanna’s crusade had started in her early teenage years. Where she had set out to save a life. She intended to do the same again. Or all the public’s faith in her would be fraudulent. Which wasn't the sort of gambling Zee was into. “Where’s a pillow and a good night’s rest when you need it?” She muttered. To begin with, supplies were required. “Owt spam fo Sal Sagev. Nacirfa Doowkcalb. Eht sevael fo a Nawor. Dna a efink.” [Two maps of Las Vegas. African Blackwood. The leaves of a Rowan. And a knife.] The idea of a magical shopping list amused her as much as performing a live tracking spell did. It felt like being on stage, except the audience was non-existent. It gave her the feeling of calmness, that she could spend as much time as she needed without worrying about another’s satisfaction. However, she quickly regained her focus. Upon each command, the items she needed appeared. She began with the maps, placing one over the other after straightening the rolls. Zatanna had long ago discovered an entry in her father’s journal that explained the logistics behind location hunting. How direction, area, and even the people within the vicinity affected it. Drawing a few drops of blood was next. One could call it the cost of the incantation. She knew better. The bodies had been almost entirely drained of their blood. It meant something feasted on the plasma, therefore the body liquid was extremely important in making this spell a unique one. Zatanna had initially believed this to be the work of vampires, although they weren’t as messy. Neither would they decorate a corpse with spells that could incinerate them upon a single glance. Plus, the woman was only half-human, her tainted blood would surely attract something. The blood would act as a catalyst, both initializing the tracking process and drawing in whatever desired to feed on it. She felt good about it, most saw her for the fame and fortune she had worked for. Down to Earth, however, Zee knew how to work the magic fly trap. If only she had a better grasp of what sort of insect was being dealt with. Rubbing her thumb where she had pricked it, she also used the knife to cut into the Rowan leaves. Allowing the shavings to fall onto the map, her hand waved over them to spread them out further. She repeated the process with the thin sheet of African Blackwood. The leaves of a Rowan tree were known for the protective barriers that could be manifested from its inspirational magic. The dark black wood shavings were her power card. Zatanna allowed them to break away in her palm, holding them over the maps as she began to cast the spell. “Morf eht s’rekamdnaw regdel, wohs em eht Tirips Dlrow.” [From the wandmaker’s ledger, show me the Spirit World.] It was a bold move, assuming this was the work of a satanic entity. It was her first choice when it came to these kinds of investigations. After all, they were the beings who hated her the most. Now that her incantation was limited to detecting nearby demons, it was necessary to specify the sort of spirit she was aiming to identify. Zatanna would likely describe it as a mystical filtering device. Bless whoever figured out magical tracking, certainly made her life easier. “Edivorp a enivid gnisnaelc no siht hparg fo latnemele snoitaicossa.” [Provide a divine cleansing on this graph of elemental associations.] The blackwood began to burn. Zee could have used a strand of hair or the corpse itself. Both of which would have been useless, given what happened the previous time she attempted that. The wood was essentially a perfect replacement. For one, it had a great connection with the afterlife. And the two most important properties she deemed to exploit: its ability to block foreign energies, and its ability to latch onto nearby elemental forces. Fire was the one she was aiming to trap. “Semalf fo eht daed, wohs em efil.” [Flames of the dead, show me life.] As the shavings burned, the fire had no effect on the blackwood. Instead, it slipped off its stygian surface and engulfed the leaves. Before completely scorching the first map. Zatanna waited. If anything that needed her attention cropped up, it would be highlighted on the remaining diagram. There was always a cost to magic. Surely, the blood of a Zatara was more than enough compensation for any nearby demonic entity. She hadn’t sold her soul. Zatanna intended to take the next victim’s place.
★ ☆ ★ ☆ ★ ☆
As the night drew closer, light bulbs in the homes alongside a large stretch of the road illuminated. All except one. The residents must have gone out. That didn’t mean the home place was unoccupied. The trespassers were silent as they ventured along a hallway before pushing down a handle. The door was a taupe colour, opening it revealed a child’s bedroom. “Last room, let’s get it over and done with.” Ferdinand’s gruff voice rang out whilst his sweat-laced palms struggled to grip a smooth flask’s lid. “Just give me that and start with the glyphs. You know, I thought summoning demons was going to be harder.” The man rolled his eyes, deciding not to argue with Grace, who unscrewed the cap and held it in an upturned position. “How do you know these things won’t kill us instead?” Lifting the open flask at an angle, she watched as the blood she had offered earlier trickled into the cap. Fishing through the satchel she wore, she grasped a paintbrush. The bristles were stained, thin strands of a warm brownish-red shade stared up at Grace. Ferdinand smiled down at the chalk between his fingers. “Our… mistress… is quite the benefactor. So quit whining and pass that over. They should be ready at the station soon.” Once he had knelt down, the chalk tip pressed against the wall. “They call these ones shadow spirits,” he continued, “they’re more than demons. Gods, divinites, name them whatever you like. They won’t kill us, Grace, because the Daeva feast on what we offer them.” After marking the wall with a faint outline, he took the cap and brush from the woman. Dipping one end into the pool of blood, Ferdinand painted over the chalkline. The strokes were systematic, almost ritualistic. The glyph was placed directly opposite to the window at the other end of the room. “I think I’ll stick with shadow spirits, thank you.” Grace had found herself pulling at the curtains, ensuring light fell upon the sigil. Moonlight was the ultimate ingredient. She looked at the final product. It was a curved ‘Z’, and an oval had been drawn between the glyph’s parallel lines. “We’re done here. Let’s go before one of them eats us…” As the two cultists walked out, Grace’s tongue burned with a couple of questions. “You sure he’s going to walk into this trap? And what’s the new kid up to?” The man thoughtfully rubbed the stubble on his chin before grinning at her. People had to die, and he wasn’t fine with that. But the mistress’ orders were to be carried out regardless. After all, she had blessed him and his followers with more of the supernatural than they had initially thought was real. And made their dreams come true. “No one said anything about this trap being put in place for the sergeant. Try looking at the bigger picture for once, sweetheart. It’s only his little girl that’s going to be torn apart.” Grimacing, the witch by his side glanced at the sadistic man, as she sprinkled salt over a gap beneath the front door. Even Godly spirits had their weaknesses. “As for Ms. Gallagher, she’s our dashing thorn.” Ferdinand spoke with the hint of a smirk, “I hope Ms. Zatara likes greenery.” Elsewhere, the loud knock of a clenched fist against a table rang in the air. “She walked out on you. Seriously? She’s the one person who knows what’s going on, and you let her run off. This isn’t an ordinary case, Highland.” Saying Dudley McMahon was agitated was an understatement. He was the guy in charge, anything and everything that went wrong would be pinned against his lapel. Not the sort of badge he wanted to polish every morning. The sergeant shook his head and glanced at a pile of case files that were only going to grow bigger. “Yeah, uh, I don’t know what you see in her. From afar, sure, dazzle and glitz, but up close? Eh, she’s better off doing this alone.” Erik closed the door and leaned against it, eyeing the other officer. “Look boss, nothin’ against the chick, but someone who keeps the facts to themselves ain’t reliable.” “Let’s put your non-existent work ethic to the side for a second, detective.” Dudley sat down and patted the files he’d been staring at. “You see this? This is a society calling for help. I aim to deliver. I trust Zatanna, until proven wrong. She has a better idea of what’s going on, and definitely the better resources, more than either of us. If it means people stop losing their mothers or siblings, I’ll gladly take all the aid I can get.” “Yeah, yeah, whatever. I’m sure she’s around somewhere.” The sergeant slid a few papers across the table and motioned at them. “Have these go through processing, and we can get out of here.” The detective shuffled towards the desk and grabbed hold of the files, leaving soon after. As always, Erik tossed the papers at someone else the minute he had the chance. He made a detour to the bathroom instead of immediately heading off to his personal workspace. Something Erik had done frequently that entire day. He pulled one of the doors back and stepped in, staring at the mirror above one of the washbasins for a second. Untucking his shirt, the occult detective didn’t look at the tattoo of sacred geometry just above the navel when he lifted it up. His eyes fell upon the thin line of torn flesh beside it, the wound a raw scar. He had two questions. When had it occurred, and why did it sporadically pour out a purplish-black liquid? And then he’d left. Had he remained a few seconds longer, the whispers would have reached his ears. “Another pawn, another life. Time’s up.”
★ ☆ ★ ☆ ★ ☆
This time, he was glad he wasn’t a passenger. He was perfectly comfortable driving. After parking up, the officer stepped out of his vehicle and made a beeline towards Zatanna. Why the hell was she outside his home? The sorceress had teleported as soon as Dudley had turned the corner, the electric white aura of energy illuminating her surroundings for a few seconds that almost blinded the man. “Sergeant! A great pleasure, as always.” The woman greeted him fondly as if she hadn’t walked out on his pending investigation earlier. McMahon was not impressed. “Where have you been?” Her reply was both unexpected, and something he figured a woman like Zatanna would say. He’d known her on a slightly more personal level for almost 4 days, and he couldn’t recall meeting a more extroverted introvert. “In the woods.” “Of course you were. Does it help the case in any way? Because, if you remember, you cancelled your show for this. If you’re struggling with your priorities, I’m sure others could help.” The Mistress of Magic pondered over that. She really had taken a murder mystery over performing for her fans. The ignorant answer her conscience provided was that it was in her nature. To aid and understand, and use all her power for the better. The more sophisticated answer was hidden in the bad feeling in her gut. “Luckily for you, sir, I’ve solved your case. Our famous killer is waiting for me inside there,” she responded, gloved finger pointing directly at his residence. Raising a brow, Dudley shook his head in disagreement. It was all Zee needed to whisper a few words that he didn’t catch onto. They both knew how the murderer targeted the victims. It began with the children and worked its way up the family hierarchy. “My daughter’s going to be asleep right about now. I’d know if something was wrong.” Zatanna tilted her head to the side and smiled warmly, and he followed her gaze. “Precious, isn’t she?” To his horror, his child was sleeping soundly in the passenger seat of his wife’s car, the latter also present in the vehicle. He couldn’t remember the previous 15 seconds either. “I can explain. Later.” Dudley turned around and clenched a fist. “No. No more games.” If he really wanted the truth, she wasn’t too worried about giving it to him. “I took the little sweetheart’s place. If my heart gets ripped to shreds, do send my regards to my cousin.” The sergeant’s mind was beginning to fill with rage, and his designated firearm suddenly felt heavier. “Your idea of detective work is to sign your life insurance over to a damn murderer?! I’m sorry, I’ll be going in alone. Stay here.” “Instead of your daughter, I think it’s reasonable for me to act as bait instead. I’ve already sealed the deal, quite a bloody affair if I’m being honest. We’re not dealing with psychos here. I’m also sorry,” she muttered, taking a step to block his way. “Peels.” [Sleep.] Zatanna watched his body curl up as he began to softly snore on the pavement. Before she entered the McMahon residence she spoke backwards once more. “Emutsoc raeppa.” [Costume appear.] The spellaholic wouldn’t have used keys even if she’d been handed them. Saying ‘unlock’ and ‘lock’ in reverse was enough. Her boots had stepped on the blessed salt, poured earlier. “Hmm.” She wondered why someone would willingly summon a demon, only to trap it. It could possibly be more powerful than she anticipated. A quick trip to a nearby religious establishment didn’t seem too bad of an idea, except Zatanna was sure that her scent had already aroused whatever was lurking in the sergeant’s home. The silence made her feel uneasy. Amongst everything she had gone up against, nothing gave her goosebumps quite like hellspawn. The occupants of the homes either side of the one she was currently in most likely had no idea about what was going on. Zee couldn’t lie, and bottle the hint of jealousy that came with the thoughts of having a normal lifestyle. Before she remembered stepping away from the life she lived would only remind her how far she had steered away from normalcy. An unusual gust, as cold as ice, forced her to tense. Turning, she saw nothing once her eyes adjusted to the dark. So much for the element of surprise. Something wanted to lure her in. Zatanna would do exactly that. It was foolish, but the quickest way to deal with a problem was to tackle it head on. The staircase’s floorboards creaked softly under each step. The Mistress of Magic tried picturing it from the sergeant’s daughter’s point of view. The girl would have been surrounded by the dark forces of life, forced to face her fears. Zee knew what terror felt like, the opportunity to take the child’s place was thus an easy decision. Pain. The physical kind. She should have seen it coming. From her peripheral, the sorceress had spotted a stirring shadow. She had not expected it to be her own, nor had she anticipated the contortions and twists. And definitely not the long tendril of shadow that reached out to claw at her face. Out of sheer desperation to catch a glimpse of the beast, she spoke out. “Thgil!” [Light!] The simple spell illuminated her palms, and she caught sight of a humanoid frame of living darkness. Arms long and sectioned off into tree-like branches of razor-sharp talons. The sudden emergence of light was blindingly bright. The demon that had latched onto her shadow shrieked, dissipating into nothingness. Knowing that the elemental forces of her white magic were a weakness for most species of hellspawn wasn’t enough. Zatanna needed more. And she got it in the form of a wall of pitch-black mist slamming her backwards. She felt a door behind her open when she hit it. Concentrating, she held out her palms to emit a large block of photonic energy to counter the demon’s abilities. The projection wouldn’t last long, her combatant’s level of power was increasing by the second. The light brightened the surrounding room. Which is how she identified the sigil. Ferdinand’s diagram almost glowed in the presence of the demonic entity that had been summoned by it. She instantly recognized the Zoroastrian symbol. “Well. I’m done for.” Zatanna’s opinion changed when she saw the materials the symbolic drawing had been sketched with. “A kcits fo klahc.” [A stick of chalk.] Thanks to what she now knew was a shadow spirit, she already had blood in the form of a bleeding wound under her left eye. Beginning to struggle under the pressure of the Godly deity, she cursed under her breath. It was either plain luck, or whoever was behind this knew the limits of her magical attributes. A higher entity had the ability to retaliate. And Zee allowed it to, releasing the light energy and watching the cloud of despair behind it take shape again. She knew two things. It hated light, and it was slow. Slow enough for her to begin drawing. There was no time to summon an Amesha Spenta (beings she recalled to be the Daevas' opposites). But there was enough time to etch a trapping circle around her. In normal circumstances, it would be useless. But she could remember how it attacked her. It needed to feed on her shadow in order for her to become its marionette. In simple terms, she was about to make it look like more of an idiot than she was, for thinking she could take on the personification of every disease in humanity. As soon as she had drawn the circle, she couldn’t move any more. The spirit was close enough to merge itself with her. The inflicted wound on her cheek began to burn. Zatanna needed a few seconds, which the divinity of chaos took advantage of. Before it could tighten a claw-like solidification of shadow around her neck, Zee spoke. “Htiw eht gnisselb fo ruoy rotaerc, sith prat lliw dloh uoy renosip.” [With the blessing of your creator, this trap will hold you prisoner.] The evil spirit closed the tendril, to no avail. Zatanna stood and stepped out of the circle. “You’re no longer confined to me, your grace,” she sarcastically stated. She could kill it. Which would lead her nowhere. If there was one thing she knew, it was how to dupe her audience. This card trick was less sleight of hand, and more knowledge of the occult. The Daeva community were an evil bunch, a community that desired freedom. This was possibly the worst mistake of her life, but on the other hand, they’d only be a threat to her. A magician always paid their price, and Zatanna had one more little trick up her sleeve. Banishment was tricky. The wording had to be philosophical, almost inviting. Like a perfect distraction. “Eht ecorf fo doog sehsinab uoy morf siht emoh dna yreve emoh! “Uoy lliw esaeler sevlesruoy morf eht noitcritser fo srenommus, yb lliw fo ym tnemyap fo modeerf.” [The force of good banishes you from this home and every home! You will release yourselves from the restriction of summoners, by will of my payment of freedom.] In essence, it was waging war with an army of Gods. She could handle it, right? “Annataz Arataz si ruoy ylno ymene. Won nrub ni Lleh.” [Zatanna Zatara is your only enemy. Now burn in Hell.] The Daeva’s form broke apart when the holy flame engulfed it, returning it to the hidden society of its fellow brethren in the alps of the underworld. When she left the house, the trapping circle had disappeared.
★ ☆ ★ ☆ ★ ☆
Quiet bars were hard to find. Quiet in the sense that her famous face wouldn’t be recognized. Zee sat in front of the bartender, looking into her empty glass. She didn’t know exactly what she’d just done. It was one thing to save a girl’s life. Releasing an army of the ancient personification of evil was another thing entirely. Zatanna had lost something else of importance in her most recent hex. She wouldn’t have the time to recognize that, when a woman that Zee found rather attractive sat on the stool beside her. A conversation stirred quickly, and the sorceress let the beverages pull her away from the thoughts she was initially concentrating on. Lydia Gallagher grinned, this would be much easier than expected.
★ ☆ ★ ☆ ★ ☆
The Mistress of Magic’s adventure continues in Loose Threads for the Beast
Sometimes I look up at the sky, at night. I wonder, is the lightning of the stars hidden by the vast dark, or is the darkness a shield? A shield that keeps us safe and calm from countless eyes that stare at us? Back then I didn’t care for the night. The air was on fire from the red morning sun, every time the same, from grad school to that day when those good Fast Times at Ridgemont High started. In the beginning it was only dark shades of purple and crimson until the firmament turned to face blood. A line of mystic clouds was in the sky, creeping forward like a white river. The street came alive minute by minute, looming trashmen came to empty our waste in the stark dust flying around. It was better in the hills with the cooling breeze before the onset of dawn. Back then life was soft and kind and sometimes the only touch of madness was a killed hedgehog on the street or two poisoned cats in the neighborhood. Now, the sky is blue and white and partly covered in striped clouds standing static on the package of my pills. My name is Nate Cohen. Or was. A sitting corpse though I might sit and breath and eat and drink but I don't laugh or sing or cry. The laid out actions of others, that brought me here, might seem untrue for they can’t be proven, but I assure you they are true. All of them. I don't know what will happen after I hit the "send" button but you all need to know there is a shade of acid in the world you don't taste or smell, but it burns your face like brimstone like flame-gas scorching your eyes like the sun was just the backside of a black hole. You'll see. I was born Nathaniel Cohen in 1991 in the glory land of sunshine, to Ira and Susan. We lived down in Sacramento, my father running flocks of cars from behind a stuffed desk, and my mother gave pottery classes every Tuesday and Thursday night, taught a few friends how to make halfskilled molds of clay. Dad was a bold man always chasing dreams of living without a mortgage, and Mum supported but was like a happy young girl and bathed in the sounds of Sunday lawnmowers and plastic pools, water from the hose filtered the rays of solar bronze. I guess in their own ways both were not real, maybe that was what tied them together. We weren't rich but not poor. I was happy before and afterwards, but loss is like a sharp pin in the foot, long lost by a sewing woman, too lazy to pick up her needles. Until then, when I was under or over 11 and my progenitor decided he needed to be home faster or sooner or was just hungry, and crashed into 2 men and 1 woman and one dog. Insurance and my grandparents (now long dead) kept us from sinking in the shelters of the homeless ones, but my mother needed work or we faced to lose the house. The first months she worked as waitress at Ear’s, a rundown bar I wasn’t allowed to enter and so sat for hours on the warm sidewalks, gleaming red in the drowning sunlight and grey and sad under the smile of Mother Selene. Some days Mrs. Anderson watched me and I watched her, sipping slowly but frequent on cheap Chadonay. This went until some better showed up, and the months turned to over a year until that happened. My mother had studied contemporary art spending hours devouring Roy Lichtenstein and the likes and to find paying employment had never been on her mind, until some time as now. Finally, after two years my mother got an offer from a small magazine in Los Angeles and we moved to this strange new world. Surprisingly, moving at the age of 13 was no fun but new friends found me as I slowly settled, when something changed. Robert Berkowitz came into our life and took us in. He was a bald man with blonde eyebrows and eyes like glowing azures, he was no stranger to money and art, which was the way he’d gotten involved with Mum. They hit it right at each other and after some months or weeks, might it was just some weeks, he took us to his house in Beverly Hills, not far from where Foothill Road hits Park Way. I did everything to leave home, my newborn half-brother Seth a crying shitting mess, stomping out silent thoughts with such vigor, that I agreed to join my mother on her monthly expeditions to the Los Angeles Country Museum of Art, near the buzzing Wilshire Boulevard. After college I enrolled in the UCLA TFT program and, with help from my stepfather, finally landed a job at a production company, Reality TV. I started out as trainee and clawed my way finally to second assistant of the executive director of scripted TV development at Geronimo Grande Productions. It wasn’t what I had dreamt of but at last I sustained myself, though Robert insisted to help with the rent for my flat on Kelton Avenue, where I still lived after graduating. Life was good back then, without the staring stars that tried to break through the night, away, far far away, Racing with the Moon. I was 28 when the shades and clouds came over me. I was out with friends, a steamed night in the cool warm air’s vibrations around us. We found a small restaurant near my place. Pitfire Artisan Pizza on 2018 Westwood Boulevard had brilliant Pesto Chicken and a damn fine Field Mushroom. I was there with Jules and Erica, enjoying dinner outside to the left of the entrance, a silent small tree our only companion, until she walked by. Inside there was a meeting of some charity organization, The Cotton Club or something. Hair like ironed black jasper and ascetic nude makeup, she strolled by in a white tank top and black yoga pants, the matt casually under her arm. I didn’t stop staring at her. I couldn’t. Some birds in some nearby trees seemed to whistle after her and she turned around, just for a second, as if to say come after me Birdy. “You in love Naty?” asked Erica, the flower from the valley with the flaxen mob on her head, sitting across from me. “No,” I stuttered “Just caught my eye. Nothing.” “Sure,” grinned Jules between his teeth, “Mine too.” he said, folding his tattooed arms in front of his chest, tongue shoved in the corner of his mouth smiling like a bobcat dressed in jeans and shirt of the same fabric, The Boy in Blue. “Why don’t ask for her number? She’s just down the corner.” “Oh, shut up predator,” I waved off, before I turned to Erica “You don’t think that’s awkward?” “Not if a guy like you asked. I remember a friend of mine met her husband like that, now Peggy Sue Got Married,” she smiled and put her head to the side. Too perfect white Hollywooddream teeth. I had seen the Girl turning left and jogged away from the Pitfire, still hearing Jules laughing, when I saw her near La Grange Ave. She cut another corner up right so I ran after her, praying to find her. Yet to the grace of my bad luck, she was gone. The street in front of me was not crowded but the vixen from my dreams was vanished. Hands empty and defeated I returned to the table. “Did she say no?” blonde Erica asked with true empathy. “Seems I lost her,” I said, trying to hide my disappoint. Just a few seconds more decisiveness and my life might have changed. “Well let’s go, search a new one,” Jules sprang up and clapped. Let’s go. The words rang, as I tumbled out of the cab up to my flat, the Girl long forgotten for the next few months until another fateful day, when I went to my gym. Workout and work kept me focused for a time and it was mostly night when I came home. I admit I was a glutton. I had to work out at least three times a week, gym rats they call them. Muscled sweat pouring gales of raw testosterone into the halls. The Equinox Gym was my favorite in Westwood and I had been a paying patron for years now and knew more faces there than in the streets around my neighborhood. I had just left after a session of pumping my brains out, when I saw her crossing me by. “Hey,” I blurted out in reflex. She tilted her hand. Black hair, a shimmer of brown in the dusky sunlight, dark eyes and a friendly smile took me right home. Right where I belonged. “Hey yourself,” she said, raising one eyebrow. “Do I know you?” she asked, without arrogance, her black-brown hair gently thrown over the left shoulder. Love leaking out of every pore I muttered a plain “Yes”. Before she had a chance to pass me by. “Sorry. I meet a lot of people lately,” she smiled “Are you in one of my courses?” “Courses?” “Well, here,” she grinned. Small white teeth and a thick red snail that crouched behind them, giving them shelter and backup, all the same. “Ah no. I think, you passed by a pizza palor couple of weeks ago?” I stuttered in embarrassment, trying to suppress redness swelling on my cheek. “Yes, that’s on my way. So, you’re my new stalker?” She laughed. “Well, don’t I feel honored,” I extended my hand “My name’s Nate, by the way.” “Amy. Amy Gallagher,” she raised a slim white wrist in the shade of the California sundown. This was the day I really met Amy Gallagher for the first time. I rue it every moment in the coffin of my sterile being with the stars laughing at me and the disc in the sky calling my name making me all Moonstruck. We set a date for the Saturday to come. I thought it fitting to go for Italian and led her to Sammy’s down at Santa Monica Boulevard. It wasn’t too expensive (I didn’t want to come across as one of those guys) but stylish enough to show her I had some taste stored in me. She wore a stunning babyblue dress just touching the tips of her knees, and her black mane was straightened in a long tail crowning her right pale shoulder. When she saw me, she licked her lips as if to prepare me for her Vampire’s Kiss. Sammy was a first gen from Palermo, old now he longed for his home and always liked to impress with native extravaganza. “Ciao ragazzi!” he said as I walked my stunning Kypris down the cheap red carpet between trashy fake Roman plastic pillars. “Come stai?” Amy replied, took his arm and left me somber. They chatted a bit in Italian, what they said I do not know, but I knew the small thing in my belly, the knot of discomfort in my stomach. Laughs and eyes on me. Cheers swallow the jokes. “You’re full of surprises,” I tried to gain control of the tilting ship, unnecessarily clawing my black hair back. “You got no idea,” she pressed her tongue between a marble row of perfect teeth, a small red viper watched out from the cave of her mouth. We talked of hard work, of idle time, of family the usual first-date-topics broken up by a hand of awkward pauses in between, like flashes in the storm. “My family’s not from around here.” “Neither’s mine.” “So whose Italian? Mom or Dad? I bet your Dad.” “None of them,” she grinned “I picked it up couple years ago.” Movies, theater, literature, antipasti, strange people, more hobbies, main dish, skipping desert and I rolled from over her in my half of the bed (thank god I had cleaned up before I left). The nights were like Sunday afternoons with her and all ungood became stored noise in the corner, so became my dead father and her dead family and my aspirations in Hollywood and her degree from John Hopkins and my love for seafood and her fishnet dress and here working Never on Tuesday. Three months and there was the big day. “So you’re the famous Amy!” mother opened her arms to greet her, eager to impress. Hard embarrassment as Robert did the same, while Seth waved at her and whispered a shy “Hi”, acting so often like young male teens, caught in the web of a child’s mind and a growing body. Robert tried to save grace by filling up after each bite and putting on some of his favorite tunes. “Nothing better than the master,” he prophesized while laying on a small fortune in the body of an old vinyl version of “Sweet Home Chicago”, his second most favorite behind “Fire Birds”. “You like to make deals yourself Nate told me,” Amy teased with a smile, Wild at Heart but calm and in control. “Oh, we got an expert over here!” he teased back. “I knew some devils myself,” she curled her pink lips, deviously looking from my chest to my eyes. “I bet you still do,” Robert winked and tucked away as my mother gave him a noticeable kick under the table with a smile on her face. “So, you’re a Yoga-instructor?” asked the former waitress, sucking out the air of the room. “Amy is actually a doctor,” I deflected as she took my forearm softly, clinging for support. “A doctor? That sounds nearly like what Zandalee did! Remember Zandalee? She was the girl down the street who had that accident a few years ago?” asked Robert, ignored by the rest. “Why not work in a hospital or a clinic?” asked my mother. “You must know, Western medicine is very limiting. There are many ways to keep oneself healthy, but you got to be open minded and have the stomach for it,” she laughed. “You mean like this Eastern stuff?” “Well there’s many older tricks to keep oneself in good shape,” she said before switching the topic “Nate says you two are art enthusiasts?” “I don’t want to brag but I know my way around,” said Mum. “Well me certainly not,” said Seth annoyed, a bored sigh escaped his lips, barely noticeable the runt of the egomaniac litter. “Who made that wristband?” Amy inquired “It looks really cool!”, prompting a hidden prideful smile from my little brother who had put a small plastic pearl on a leather band knotted around his wrist. “I did,” Seth said, as he stared awkwardly at the table. “Don’t be shy baby,” said my mother “he’s usually not like that.” “Just not interested in girls yet.” “Are you famous?” asked the child, his cheeks bright red. “No, I’m afraid I’m not,” said my love, giggling like an imbecile on her Honeymoon in Vegas. “You sure? Aren’t you from the poor family?” asked the child again. “Why do you ask?” “I saw you on TV. You’re in that show about it.” “Seth what are you talking? Stop that nonsense!” insisted my mother. “It’s not nonsense,” said the child “Enough now!” said mother. “Ready for some games?” asked Robert as we dropped Seth’s fantasy. “As ready as Amos & Andrew,” answered my Mum. We spent the rest of the eve with talk and drink and spilled chips and even attempted to gamble on a bit of Ma-Jong before everyone sighed in boredom and we drove back to Amy’s place at Red Rock West with the Deadfall of the evening behind us. Usually, I had no trouble sleeping somewhere else and I had been to her little house at the fringes of the city’s civilization more often than not and when I woke at 03:00 a.m. the room smelled like gasoline. The TV was dead. We had watched something didn’t we? I thought “Guarding Tess” or “It Could Happen to You” was just starting when we dropped in. The things I knew were all so useless, I thought, what did it all do me good to know A Century of Cinema? The bed was empty except for my own sweaty body, the smell like tiny razors in my nose, and when I called out, the only response was nothing from the hallway. I made my way outside on the corridor when I heard the whispers. At first I thought they came from the dirty bathroom but the closer I came towards the stairway the clearer it was. Some voice was talking in the kitchen. Hiding my presence, I gazed through the open door and saw my girlfriend stare up at the moon, her voice barely a sound in it’s dead light. I didn’t hear what she said but for a while it seemed like there was someone else with us, someone who saw me and pointed a finger, led to her turning around, her eyes open and wide locking on my face. I jumped back at the swift surprise, as she called my name. “Nate?” she asked me with a hunted voice, as if ready to give me the Kiss of Death. “Y-Yeah. Everything all right Babe?” “Sure. What you doing down here?” “You were talking.” “Did I wake you up?” she opened her arms to hug and we embraced another. Something wasn’t right. “What you doing here? It’s after 4 in the morning and you here in the kitchen.” I left the words hanging in the air. “You never noticed? I sleepwalk, always have. You really never woke up to this before? Did it since I was a baby when we were Leaving Las Vegas.” I had no idea what she said. She told me it had happened to her since she was a child and that she had strange dreams of the moon and would wake up in the kitchen or the living room, mouth dry which meant she talked for long times, though to whom or what, she never said. Said it happened when she fell with the head right on the top of The Rock. We went back to bed but something was off. There was a noise. Or was there? I tried to turn around, roll over, Amy’s soft snoring next to me. Still a noise. Or not? Yes, yes definitely a noise. Or not? A crackling sound, I jumped up. Slowly I crept outside the bed. Maybe just a bird had hit a window, had happened before. I crouched into the hallway, it came from the door. There was someone outside. Someone whistling. Slowly I made my way towards it, careful not to make the outsider aware of my presence. I heard him breath or something that seemed like breathing. Half-breathing. Through the peephole I saw the void outside. There was nothing, just darkness and that whistling noise, soft and barley hearable. It changed. Like light but not light, maybe orange or red. Did someone make a fire? Who would make fire in a building? It was like a bright red ring surrounding the black void. Then it blinked and I fainted. Weeks came about and went by and work took me up as our next big project came, on my side always dutiful two new interns who often filled the whole office with the smell of fries they brought with them. We were in one of the smaller conference rooms, clean metal filled with flecks from cheap food, taking short breaks in between the longing working hours. Sometimes I would use the breaks to talk some things through with my boss, always eager to show him how dedicated and thankful I was. His office had his name on the door but every time I couldn’t suppress the image of Very Important Pennis: Uncut on it. My tow fellow working drones were out to grab some snacks and I enjoyed the insularity of the room and took deep breaths, breathing through, Con Air from its powerful oxygen. In my hand, a cup of coffee laying my eyes on the window, down on the people who passed another on the concrete between the pavements, when at the corner a man stood still. He was not ordinary. He just stood there. Had he stood here before? I don’t know but he stood and watched and then waved. Did he wave his hand at me? I came closer and tried to see what he was doing. He raised his arm up in 45 degrees, and a single finger pointed at me like a spear as I gasped. Was this man mad? Was he seriously looking at me? There was something odd with him, I knew. There was something with his grimace, his Face/Off like he didn’t belong here. Not on the street, but right here right that he was wrong in the City of Angles with his staring and unblinking Snake Eyes. As if he licked the thoughts in my head he violently shook his face up and down, loosening his slicked back brown hair and he smiled like a kid until for a moment his skin shook looked like a loosened mask. Then he hopped from one leg to the other, passers just ignored him, one to the other one to the other one to the other and bang he had fallen flat on the street crushing his head on the ground. He lifted himself, blood tripling down on his brown suit and his white shirt and he did the same again. With full force he cracked his face on the hot concrete, again and again, sputtering teeth in all directions, still everyone ignored him and laughed at the sunfilled day. As sudden as before he stood up, waved at me and ran away around the corner. In disbelief I kept standing and saw him look around the corner, staring at me until he produced an 8mm camera he pointed downwards. Then he started to spit around, all over the place as if that would have some effect like melting the stone or Bringing Out the Dead (which of course it didn’t). Then he was gone in no time, Gone in 60 Seconds. Unbelievable what I had seen. When the interns returned, I pointed the spot out but the blood wasn’t there and the street so dirty clean like ever, and they thought I joked at them and turned their pimpled faces into smiles. Maybe it had just been bizarre performance, stranger things happened. I told Amy of it and she agreed that it was nothing but an act or maybe really just a party clown or maybe someone who wanted to perform for his kids like The Family Man that he might be. I snugged up to her and pulled her close. I was happy and lucky and had to suppress that crunching emotion of bliss for a single time in my life only to accept the beauty in it with my shortloved heart. I didn’t think about the man until a month later, it was weekend and Amy had her courses to give so I decided to grab my brother for a time at the beach. The hot sand around us we were lain out in the sun, talked about girls our mother and that his encroaching puberty started to cause tidal waves in the house. Time had flown and I was glad I took the day to spend it with him. On our route home I filled up the car at the next gas station. There I met the Man again. Seth had taken time to make a visit to the toilet as I waited in the car. I was on my phone and scrolled through reviews for the coming movie night. I made a selection, “Captain Corelli’s Mandolin” it was and “Christmas Carol: The Movie” and “Windtalkers” but a newer Adaptation, I looked up and saw the Man in the front of the car. His blue eyes examined my face, brown suit brown hair, and he hopped back in one jump and picked something up. It was a little beagle and he pulled the puppy tight to his chest and scratched him gently behind the ears, whispering something into them that sounded like Sonny, but I’m not sure. He looked again at my eyes and he smiled. I didn’t know how to react, so I smiled back at him and showed him my thumb up and prayed he may go away. He did not. He dropped the puppy to the ground and kicked it and jumped on it. I heard the yelp and whimpering from outside but was too shocked to do something. He jumped up and down time after time my mouth opened in terror as I saw the blood on his black shoes. Through all this he had this relaxed smile and looked at me. The howls of the puppy stopped and he picked up the furry meat, the head a mess of bone shards and brain, one eyeball broken out, dangled down form the rest of the defiled carcass. The Man pulled the puppy tight to his chest and lifted his thumb, cradling his face in the red stew. He let it fell down to the ground again and kicked it again and again until it was bloods-and-bones-stew. I opened the car door when Seth shouted, “Where are you going?” I turned around to see he poked his head in the rustic car and as I nudged to the front, I saw the Man was gone. Headfirst I sprang out the car and nosedived on the street, my face nearly touched the asphalt. He was gone and so was the blood. Seth shouted out but I was inside the shop already and begged the young cashier for aid, asked her if she hadn’t seen the Man outside. Headlight eyes looked at me in fear as I tried to grab her shoulders over the counter. Dirt blew up all around me as I touched the dusty bins and shelves. After a babbling tirade I looked at the hand that clenched my arm. Seth looked bewildered at me, his eyes asked if I gone maniac. I had scared him but it brought me back to reality, for a short time. We sat silent in the car until angry hoops of late afternoon commuters called for banishment. I turned around and parked on the lot, then called police. They weren’t skeptical like in the films, especially when I told them that I had seen the man before. An understanding face took notes and went inside to consult with the cashier. I called Mum. “What you guys up to? What’s going on?” “Mum,” I said. “There was this guy.” “Did something happen with Seth? What did he do?” “Nothing,” I said and watched from the frame of my sight how my brother curled up in the passenger seat. “It was just odd.” “What’s the matter with you? You scared me to death,” she said. I couldn’t scare her with this. Had I really imagined it all? I called Amy but she didn’t answer. There was nothing on the video, they said. Just me in the car staring bewildered then stumbling out like drunk. They gave me various explanations from dehydration to stress and left me and my brother there on the road. I opened the door and fell on the couch. I told him about my encounters with the man and tried to find reasons for the strange behavior until he asked if I couldn’t file against a stalker. Was this Man stalking me? I ditched my list and let Seth choose a film and slumped on the couch with dry eyelids covering my headache. I woke up from a noise at the door, Seth crouched on my shoulder in sleep. After a half slice of pizza and a cold shower we sat down with Seth on the couch, he somewhat checking out my girlfriend’s body under the green summer dress, a piece of cloth befitting a city not in tune with itself but always in fake summer. We lied in bed afterwards, she behind me, pressed against my back. I drifted away with a headache and the blazing last sunrays shone behind my eyelids again, a flash of a smile of the Man and his rat teeth and his chopstick-dress and he all set on fire, just standing and smiling. I woke and stared in darkness, the moon smirking at my anguish. Night bathed the room and I heard the deep snoring sound of Amy, still behind me. I told her there was a thing at the door in the apartment. Sober from sleep her grogginess fell in an instant, and stiff like a white candle, she was up in the bed next to me. Her hands turned on the light and I moved a finger to the mouth and slowly crawled out from the bed, scared and slow steps I leaped forward looking behind me to see her face. She got up after me and held a hand on my back, a sign of watchful reassurance. The rest of my home was dark and silent but for the breathing of Seth on the couch who woke as I switched on the lightbulbs tingling above his hair. Questioning eyes, he asked what was going on, Amy sat down with him as I went through all rooms again. Then in the bedroom I looked under the bed and there was nothing. Back in the darkness of the hallway, Amy whispered to me of talking to someone a therapist or a psychiatrist, as I just stared at the shadow of a Man that was next to me, his face inches away from mine.
Las Vegas Tourist Guide: Know Your Casinos. All kinds of tourists probably know what a casino is. But for those who don't, a casino by definition is a facility or establishment that houses and accommodates gambling in the form of card games like poker and blackjack, and games of chance like roulette and slot machines. Tattoos are becoming more and more prevalent as times goes on, especially gambling artwork. Whilst some can be basic designs, others involve exceptional detail and vivid colours. Discover our top 23 เม.ย. 2017 - พินนี้ค้นพบโดย Jenna Holaday ค้นพบ (และบันทึก!) พินของคุณเองใน Pinterest Apr 26, 2013 - #Gambling #Gamble #Casino #Cards #Blackjack #Poker #Craps #Slots #Tattoos #Tats . See more ideas about tattoos, gambling tattoo, gambling. 233 Gambling Tattoos Designs & Ideas. Nice Animated Gambling Cards And Dice Tattoo For Ribs. Las Vegas Gambling 3d Table Tattoo Design Gambling tattoos can be designed in so many ways and have several themes. If you’re not getting the slot machines design, you’ll see playing cards, poker, dice, money, sexy women, roulette wheels, and so many other brilliant ideas. Some will even contain a witty phrase about gambling and Las Vegas. Mar 26, 2014 - Explore Nick Pratte's board "vegas tattoos" on Pinterest. See more ideas about vegas tattoo, tattoos, gambling tattoo. Apr 23, 2017 - This Pin was discovered by Brendan fowler. Discover (and save!) your own Pins on Pinterest Irezumi Tattoos. . Saved from tattoodaze.com. Site Suspended - This site has stepped out for a bit. las vegas gambling tattoos MEMEs Site Suspended - This site has stepped out for a bit. las vegas gambling tattoos MEMEs Las Vegas Tattoos: Bright Lights, Big City, Bold Ink - Tattoo.com Las Vegas is a sacred haven of nightlife and entertainment for the masses. I may be marginalizing the cities historic importance when I say that Las Vegas’ economy is almost exclusively dependent on tourism, but…
Las Vegas Surveillance - Cheats And Scams - YouTube
Don't be the victim of any of these Las Vegas mistakes! Here are all the things NOT to do in Las Vegas. Subscribe to our channel: https://goo.gl/kMGKSAA big ... Louis Theroux plays Blackjack -Gambling in Las Vegas - BBC - Duration: 3:25. BBC Studios ... Mile Higher Life 6,485 views. 13:16. NEW TATTOOS + A BIRD FLEW IN OUR HOUSE! - Duration: 14:22. Mile ... Gambling tattoos - Best gambling tattoo designs ideas - Duration: 6:20. Lucas Price 8,091 views. 6:20. ... Las Vegas 1/2 Sleeve tattoo By: Jesus Sanchez (Wylde Sydes Tattoo) - Duration: 0:49 ... LAS VEGAS PENTHOUSE TOUR! Huge Penthouse over 500ft in the air with a glass hot tub hanging off the balcony- with a view of the entire Las Vegas strip at nig... Las Vegas is crazy fun, but make sure you don't become a victim of these tourist traps, scams, and rip-offs. Get cashback and a $30 CASH BONUS: https://www.r... Documentary set in las vegas with cheats and scams caught on camera and how the casinos find cheats Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube. It’s my husband’s first time in Vegas!!! and it’s one of my favorite places to go to but I didn’t enjoy it that kuch because it’s too hot Filmed: July 30-31, 2019. Walking Around Las Vegas Prostitutes & Whores #throughglass http://www.cansoup..com Tony and I were walking around Freemont Street in Las Vegas and decided t...
