Post by Matt Pulver on Apr 15, 2023 23:44:36 GMT
The sun shines down on Chiflado's ranch, as the man who will become Pollo Dorado II does hindu squats in the field.
Breathing the thin air of the Bolivian Andes makes his head feel heavy and his body even heavier. But in his head he hears a soft maternal voice.
"Deep breaths… Inhale… Exhale…"
He does as the voice says, following the rhythm with his breath. His head feels lighter - like he can think clearly…
Wait.
He doesn't live here anymore. This isn't real.
This is a dream.
Continuing his breaths, his body becomes lighter and he begins floating up into the air.
He feels a strong sense of freedom, as he continues ascending towards the sun, which is now a big shiny championship belt. He reaches out and grabs it.
As he takes it in his arms, another sun appears behind it. In it, he glimpses Chiflado's face - with his trademark mischievous grin.
He floats towards it, but his body feels heavy. A flock of chickens are clinging to him. They peck at him and weigh him down - but he must… keep… going….
When he looks at the sun again, AJ's face looks back - with his trademark mischievous grin.
Startled, he begins falling to the ground. The chickens are now vultures, gnawing on his skin.
The voice returns.
"Deep breaths… Inhale.. Exhale…"
As his breathing slows down, the championship in his arms turns to sand. Beneath him, the mountains are all crumbling to sand as well.
He lands in the sand, finding himself on a beach.
There's an ocean in front of him, a ship sailing its still waters. A moment of peace.
Suddenly, a giant kraken-like creature rises out of the ocean. It smashes the ship im half with a tentacle.
The creature looks him in his eyes. It's David Troy's eyes - friendly, but hiding a destructive hunger.
It approaches the shore and all he can do is stand before it like a nervous child, as it begins devouring him with its gaping mouth, dragging him into an abyssal void, draining his consciousness.
He jolts awake with a violent twitch that shakes his entire body. His breathing is fast and shallow.
"Deep breaths... Inhale… Exhale…"
The soft German voice soothes him. It belongs to Sophia, the physiotherapist the Original Dorado sent him to after he fainted in that board meeting three weeks before.
Her tight grip on his shoulders would make Alexander Irvine proud, but she lets it go as he sits up on the massage table. His mask makes it even harder to breathe.
The room is small and only lit up by scented candles.
“What’s happening to me?”
He feels shame as he hears the fear in his own voice. His defense against Troy is days away, and here he is getting massages and feeling like a frightened child.
“What you’re experiencing is just your body’s response to years worth of tension being released.”
He tries deepening his shallow breath, as her hands return to his shoulders.
“Injuries - fractures, whiplash and other physical trauma - all get stored in the nervous system. Even if they outwardly heal, the tension is still there. Like a wounded animal, always anticipating the next attack. Never able to rest."
Images of Troy breaking MEZA's leg flashes through his mind. A giant tentacle smashing through a ship.
"I don't know who you are under that mask. But from your body I can tell that you're a lot like your father. And not just because you wear a mask to your appointments."
He chuckles at the idea of the Original Dorado being his father, but doesn't correct her.
"It's like you carry the world on your shoulders, while trying to run a triathlon. And it's breaking you down."
She squeezes a tight knot in his neck, almost causing himself to scream in pain.
"I know you can't do less. Your father is the same. You live to work."
Even though the pain is intense, he feels his muscles relaxing.
"But you need to let go of having to have control,” he hears the smile in her voice, "and remember to breathe."
Returning to his breath, he lies back down on his stomach, as Sophia continues her work.
Inhale…
Closing his eyes, his mind begins drifting away.
Exhale…
He's back on that beach. The waves gently roll into shore.
Inhale...
The ocean is calm at this moment, but he's ready to face whatever is in front of him. As a man.
Exhale…
Breathing the thin air of the Bolivian Andes makes his head feel heavy and his body even heavier. But in his head he hears a soft maternal voice.
"Deep breaths… Inhale… Exhale…"
He does as the voice says, following the rhythm with his breath. His head feels lighter - like he can think clearly…
Wait.
He doesn't live here anymore. This isn't real.
This is a dream.
Continuing his breaths, his body becomes lighter and he begins floating up into the air.
He feels a strong sense of freedom, as he continues ascending towards the sun, which is now a big shiny championship belt. He reaches out and grabs it.
As he takes it in his arms, another sun appears behind it. In it, he glimpses Chiflado's face - with his trademark mischievous grin.
He floats towards it, but his body feels heavy. A flock of chickens are clinging to him. They peck at him and weigh him down - but he must… keep… going….
When he looks at the sun again, AJ's face looks back - with his trademark mischievous grin.
Startled, he begins falling to the ground. The chickens are now vultures, gnawing on his skin.
The voice returns.
"Deep breaths… Inhale.. Exhale…"
As his breathing slows down, the championship in his arms turns to sand. Beneath him, the mountains are all crumbling to sand as well.
He lands in the sand, finding himself on a beach.
There's an ocean in front of him, a ship sailing its still waters. A moment of peace.
Suddenly, a giant kraken-like creature rises out of the ocean. It smashes the ship im half with a tentacle.
The creature looks him in his eyes. It's David Troy's eyes - friendly, but hiding a destructive hunger.
It approaches the shore and all he can do is stand before it like a nervous child, as it begins devouring him with its gaping mouth, dragging him into an abyssal void, draining his consciousness.
He jolts awake with a violent twitch that shakes his entire body. His breathing is fast and shallow.
"Deep breaths... Inhale… Exhale…"
The soft German voice soothes him. It belongs to Sophia, the physiotherapist the Original Dorado sent him to after he fainted in that board meeting three weeks before.
Her tight grip on his shoulders would make Alexander Irvine proud, but she lets it go as he sits up on the massage table. His mask makes it even harder to breathe.
The room is small and only lit up by scented candles.
“What’s happening to me?”
He feels shame as he hears the fear in his own voice. His defense against Troy is days away, and here he is getting massages and feeling like a frightened child.
“What you’re experiencing is just your body’s response to years worth of tension being released.”
He tries deepening his shallow breath, as her hands return to his shoulders.
“Injuries - fractures, whiplash and other physical trauma - all get stored in the nervous system. Even if they outwardly heal, the tension is still there. Like a wounded animal, always anticipating the next attack. Never able to rest."
Images of Troy breaking MEZA's leg flashes through his mind. A giant tentacle smashing through a ship.
"I don't know who you are under that mask. But from your body I can tell that you're a lot like your father. And not just because you wear a mask to your appointments."
He chuckles at the idea of the Original Dorado being his father, but doesn't correct her.
"It's like you carry the world on your shoulders, while trying to run a triathlon. And it's breaking you down."
She squeezes a tight knot in his neck, almost causing himself to scream in pain.
"I know you can't do less. Your father is the same. You live to work."
Even though the pain is intense, he feels his muscles relaxing.
"But you need to let go of having to have control,” he hears the smile in her voice, "and remember to breathe."
Returning to his breath, he lies back down on his stomach, as Sophia continues her work.
Inhale…
Closing his eyes, his mind begins drifting away.
Exhale…
He's back on that beach. The waves gently roll into shore.
Inhale...
The ocean is calm at this moment, but he's ready to face whatever is in front of him. As a man.
Exhale…