Chapter 20.5

T H E   S U P E R M A R K E T   I S   V O I D of sunlight and darkness. It escapes natural time. The fluorescent beams above buzzing, working around the clock to provide queasy inanimate glow. This is my insomnia personified.
   I take out the dirty blood stained paper with Tyler’s scrawled words like hieroglyphics:
   2 gallons of Sunny Fresh orange juice concentrate
   white vinegar
   cat litter
   fifteen rolls of industrial grade duct tape
   bleach

A blonde with her silicon tits and American Eagle outfit pushes the trolley. Its contents pro-biotic yoghurt, organically grown kale and tofu. Diet fit for a health conscious L.A. type. Somehow the exterior doesn’t match the interior. 
   Before today’s advancements in technology and science, patients were injected with breast implant fillers such as ivory, glass ball, ground rubber, ox-cartilage, formaldehyde polymer sponge, paraffin and tissue harvested from benign tumour.


   "Without their death, their pain, their sacrifice, we would have nothing," says Tyler. Somehow I don’t think it applies here. Now it’s said that explosives can be sealed within implants to avoid detection from airport scanners. Could this blonde be a potential Al-Qaeda terrorist? News paper article show concern and genuine fear over these deadly weapons. 
    "We have been told to pay particular attention to females who may have concealed hidden explosives in their breasts.” 
    "This is particularly difficult for us to pick up but we are on a very high state of alert," leading to longer waiting quos at Heathrow airport, and such. 

I wonder how much good her diet of kale and tofu would do if her breasts exploded. She brushes past me, leaving scent of floral air freshener in her trail. Tyler would wonder what kind of a wax job she has.
   I am Joe’s shameful erection.

Rows of hair dye products in various colours. How many different shades of blonde can there be? With the low price of $8.90 you can dye-job yourself into a bubbly blonde this week, to a sultry redhead the next. The hair models gleaming beauty pageant faces look like decapitated heads floating in space. 
   Because you’re worth it! 5 Diamine, Ethanolamine, Hexylene Glycol, Resorcinol, p-Aminophenol, Toluene 2, Sodium Metabisulfate. Where’s the FDA when you need them?

The first rule about Project Mayhem is you don’t ask questions about Project Mayhem. Why all this orange juice concentrate? Tyler could have sent a space monkey for this brainless honour, instead he sends me. 
"Mix gasoline with equal part of orange juice concentrate you make napalm," Tyler says. 
   I am Joe’s hurtful rejection. 
Tyler and I were the beginning of Fight Club, and now I've been reduced down to an errand boy. How does the content of my trolley define me as a person?

"Clean up on aisle six." The omnipresent voice commands through the overhead speaker. An employee mops up the burst can of pea soup on aisle six. If only life was that simple. At this time of the night the ratio of Super’save employees outweigh the customers. On every aisle is a worker bee maintaining the orderliness of its hive, making sure that items are displayed correctly and that they don’t run out of stock. A worker bee tagging discounted price on all the singular packaged bars of soap with a price gun. Click, Click, Click, Click.

  Here's an entire generation slaving away for minimum wage. Your employer would like to pay you less, only it’s not legally possible. We’re living a day by day on the generosity of Mr. Visa, Mastercard, American Express. You and your entire life can be summed up numerically. Your bank account balance, hourly wage, purchase transactions, student loan, credit rating, mortgage, insurance payments, the $19.99 charge on your credit card for pay per view porn on your last business trip.
   This is your life, ending one minute at a time. Another employee is restocking fabric softener. The worker bees with the same zombie expression on their faces like Raymond K. Hessel’s before I had a gun down his throat. 
   Or was that Tyler?
We work jobs that we hate to buy things we don’t need with our minimum wage. Out of the million items available for purchase at Super’save, what do you need for your basic life-survival in the hunter-gatherer sense of the word? What are you actually saving here?
   Are these thoughts mine or Tyler’s?

I fondle my pockets searching for a wallet. 
   Shit. 
   I apologize, defeated.
   Ready to abandon my trolley of stuff. "Don’t worry sir, it’s on the house." I see the raised flesh of a kiss mark on the checkout boy’s hand. Soft and pink like a new born baby. He can’t be a day over eighteen.     
   All hail the first church of Tyler Durden.

The checkout boy doesn’t bother to scan the items. He takes care to stack them inside a heavy cardboard box and carries it to the bus stop. "Good bye sir." The boy’s mouth shapes these words as the bus drives away.
   
Where is Tyler now?

 

Bleach: Twisted Twister

Bleach - oneshot: Twisted Twister

It was a peaceful sunny day in Soul Society. And while everyone was soaking up the sun, in their own way, a little soul was doing the same thing, in underground tunnels. Her name is Yachiru Kusajishi, Lieutenant of Squad 11. As she was making her way to the nearest exit, she was stopped by the sound of familiar voices, coming from right above her. Those voices belonged to Rukia Kuchiki and Ichigo Kurosaki. A playful smile appeared on Yachiru’s face as the conversation took an interesting turn.

“What’s taking you so long? I’ve seen you in all different positions today. Don’t get shy on me now”, said Ichigo. “Wow! Rukia, you’re blushing. You look adorable when you blush”

“Shut up and get on with it”, yelled Rukia.

“(laughs) Acting tough during your first time, don’t worry, I’ll take it slowly”, purred Ichigo.

“Promise? I’m a bit scared”

“I promise, now, come here and kneel!”

“Oh my!”, said Yachiru to no one in particular. “I never knew Ichigo was such a smooth operator, I wonder what Byakun will say if he finds out.”

Although Yachiru was underground and couldn’t make out what was happening above her, what she overheard could only mean that Ichigo and Rukia were being very intimate with each other. But before she could take a further step, a moan escaped Rukia’s mouth as well as a series of accelerated pleasurable panting.

“Oh my god (moans)…Oh my god (panting)…, please Ichigo, don’t stop”

Ichigo chuckled. “You like this, huh?”

“Yes (more moans), yes I do”, responded Rukia.

“Oh, Rukia Kuchiki asking for more. I never thought I’d see the day when this would happen”, replied Ichigo.

Suddenly things turned sour between Ichigo and Rukia. They started bickering with each other. At that stage Yachiru had lost interest and was on her way out from the tunnels. She was on her way to find Byakuya and tell him what she had overheard. She couldn't wait to see his reaction. She found him walking around his magnificent big garden. Byakuya waited patiently as Yachiru made her way towards him. She started the conversation by saying, "Hello Byakun, beautiful day, isn't it?" 

“Lieutenant Kusajishi, haven’t I said this before? The Kuchiki grounds isn’t a playground for your childish games. If you will excuse me I have business to attend too.”

Before Byakuya turned on his heel to leave, Yachiru said “Such a shame to be spending the day in-closed doors like Ichigo. Luckily, Rukia is keeping him company. Although, you might be interested to know...". Yachiru explained what she had overheard while Byakuya listened without saying a word but the crease in his brows indicated his uneasiness as the story went on. Once Yachiru was finished and without further ado, they both made their way to Rukia's room. Upon arrival, they find an unconscious Renji, on the floor with a nosebleed. 

“Idiot! It says left hand blue. Are you as stupid as well as short?” yelled Ichigo.

“Shut up! This is awkward, that’s all” responded Rukia. 

“Hey, you’re the one who wanted to play this game, I am just tagging along. This move places you slightly on top of me”

“What? Like this?”

“Hmm, hmm, now…”

The conversation was cut short by Byakuya opening the door. They found Rukia in a crab like position and Ichigo was underneath her making a small bridge. They were both standing on a plastic sheet laid on the floor with colourful dots on them. An awkward atmosphere settled among everyone. Ichigo was lost for words and was finding it hard to look Byakuya in the eye, Rukia couldn’t stop blushing, Byakuya was deadly quiet, Yachiru was smiling as if it was the most natural thing in the world and Renji was still unconscious on the ground with a nosebleed.

“What is going on here?”, demanded Baykuya.

Ichigo explained that they were playing a game called Twister and was demonstrating what the game was about. “After spinning, the combination is called and you match the correct hand or foot to the corresponding color on the mat. The spinner says left foot yellow so you put your left foot on a yellow dot. Rukia picked it up from the Human World and wanted to learn how it was played. So I tagged along and showed her.”

Yachiru looked confused and asked why she heard them moaning and panting. Blushing, Rukia explained that she had hurt herself while playing. "Ichigo gave me a massage."

"Too good aye, Rukia?", taunted Ichigo.

“Why is my Lieutenant lying unconscious with a nosebleed outside your door?” asked Byakuya all the while looking towards the unconscious form on the floor.

Rukia and Ichigo ran towards Renji to see whether he was alright. But Yachiru suddenly understood why Renji had fainted. He must have been eavesdropping on their conversation leading him to the wrong ideas. The same ideas which were running through Yachiru’s head. But in her defence, she was underground and couldn’t explain what was going on.

“I don’t know why Renji is on the floor, said Rukia, he seems to be okay. But we invited him to come along and join the game.”

And there you have it, all ends well that finishes well. Yachiru joined Rukia and Ichigo at playing Twister, while Byakuya accompanied Renji to the Manor’s infirmary. It was all a big misunderstanding which was cleared up in no time. And everybody went back to enjoying the rest of the peaceful sunny day in Soul Society in their own way. 

Why there's more than meets the eye with Transformers.

All rights reserved to the original owner. 

Transformers became obligatory assets in people’s lives. Multiple reforms devised by Optimus Prime resulted in the development of an alien cramped world. Optimus is responsible for the introduction of outer space organisms called Transformers. The introduction distinguished through his first war with the opposing Decepticon resulted in the redevelopment of Transformers on Earth. He used Transformers as an asylum for the Earths fate. Therefore, humans began to doubt their own propaganda. The world congregated toward the redevelopment at the price of overpopulation and food demands exceeding beyond a famine. As a result global markets lacked supply therefore demand met its own needs. Many of us initially believed our lives were at risk because of the battling opposition, the Decepticon. However, the world thought wrong because the Decepticon were used as a decoy to influence Humans that the world was at end. Optimus migrated to Earth with his own hoax he used for years until our Earth was beyond its apocalypse age. Optimus lied about the truth behind why he was present.  

In 2007 when Optimus first appeared, the world witnessed the defeat of Megatron, leader of the Decepticon. Afterwards, the Humans and their diligence found the opportunity to use the aliens. However, without concern, they were unaware Optimus was playing a game of monopoly on Earth. The Megatron defeat resulted in the development of NEST. A fail government program aimed at global defense through the interaction of Transformers led by Optimus. NEST put Optimus in a position where he could lead everyone to believe the world was at risk of a foreign invasion, the Decepticon. Many of us believed he was actually here to defend our world, especially with how NEST portrayed his image. This was all wrong. Optimus had his own approach for Humans. He had learnt our languages and ethics through the World Wide Web before he arrived. This fundamental understanding of our ethics was used to globally influence everyone with a capitalist approach. He claimed, that if the world did not capitalize for Transformer development, the Earth would be destroyed from the Decepticon. The successful approach had everyone focused on the benefits from Transformers in our world. Therefore, instead of investing into property and shares, Transformers became obligatory assets in people’s lives. People spent billions in pursuit for the best Transformers to defend against Decepticon decoys designed by Optimus.

Optimus purposely used the Decepticon decoys to influence everyone the world was at end. He hosted an alien war in 2007 with the Decepticon that resulted in the initial communication with the aliens. As a result of the trust put together between NEST and Optimus the world encountered overpopulation and a series of famines. One-child policy laws were enforced to minimize the reproduction of Humans and maximize Transformation development. Although this was a mistake from NEST to act on overpopulation, the world had become heedless toward there own kind. Some people murdered children, while others kidnapped and held them hostage. This was only made possible with the integration of Transformers from Optimus. Optimus never liked children. A child of any nature had the ability to enlighten Optimus with emotion he cannot experience. This was his flaw; the sight of a child before he killed something could break him down within seconds. However, without the help of governments such as NEST the One-child policy laws would not have been made possible. Many people grew relationships with Transformers to the point where some began to murder their own children in sacrifice for their Transformer. The Humans shifted their Earth into a pandemonium.

Transformers have since dominated our world. I grew up with this disaster.  My name is Sam Witwicky and I was only 17 when Optimus first came to Earth with the other Transformers. Among the many, one became my caretaker. His name was Bumblebee. He first appeared when I bought my first car. Throughout the series of wars with the Decepticon he saved my life several times. I felt honoured and privileged because I was one of the first they contacted. For years Bumblebee and I built a successful relationship until Optimus ruined everything. Even though he is obviously an alien robot and cannot resemble human qualities, we spent years together. However, he has no memory of our past because Optimus destroyed it. Optimus has the ability to restore the nucleus within his Transformers brains. Therefore, he deleted the memory of Bumblebee. I lost my robot and first car. Although it may have been a mistake to interact with the aliens, the times I spent with Bumblebee are inevitable. Optimus has since preponderated our biggest nations, America, China, Europe, Russia and more. The world is ravished. I live in the Australian outback in a bunker that lays 30ft below ground. My life may have been a thrill but these days I spend most of my time regretting I had met that Transformer in the eye.  

Word count: 817

Eddie's Sherlock Holmes Fanfiction

Backstory:
Private Detective Sherlock Holmes and his assistant and only friend Doctor Watson have been solving crime for years for Inspector Lestrade to try and stop Professor Moriarty who is the puppet master of all crime in London. 
However, lately Watson has found himself to be a target of the criminal underworld for no good reason. This story takes place as this mystery comes to a close. Watson goes for a lunchtime walk to get some air from his shared flat which Holmes has not been seen in since late the night before.

Title: Checkmate, My Dear Holmes

Original Picture Source

I found myself clutching my bleeding shoulder as I tried to keep conscious behind the bins of the local Fish and Chip store. 

They'd been following me for weeks, and finally, they’d got me. I remember thinking that if I wasted much more time wincing and clenching my teeth while trying to keep myself from losing more blood, they would come back and finish the job properly.

I poked my head out like a frightened dog, decided the coast was clear enough to make a break for it, and then went for it.

I kept my head low as I bolted for the wooden door of a factory across the driveway, expecting more bullets to come whizzing past my head, maybe even hitting me.

Yet none came.

I breathed a heavy, but broken, sigh of relief as the door gave way and the blanket of darkness inside surrounded me, keeping me safe from the horrors outside.

Original Picture Source

I don't have much time to write, so I'll keep this brief. I found that I had stumbled upon a major location in the crime circuit. I was extremely lucky that I had walked into a deserted part of the building, as it was obvious that there was a meeting going on near the Southern end. I took some photos on my phone as evidence as I headed towards the source of the discussion going on.

I wasn’t intending to stay for long but my ears pricked up when I heard a hushed whisper:

“Is Mr. Moriarty’s vehicle ready?”

“Yes, it’s up by the entrance, now come, we mustn’t be any later than we already are…”

Original Picture Source

I stalked them until I reached an office that guarded a big clearing. Nearly 50 people were gathered around a man standing in a black trenchcoat giving very strict orders.

But I couldn’t pay attention to his words.

It was his voice that struck me, and his face.

It was Sherlock.

The men were all addressing him as ‘Moriarty’, and they were making plans as to how the group would kidnap a rich family’s daughter then ‘Sherlock’ would find her for a reward.

This confirmed my theory that I had been building up throughout the last several months about Sherlock, if that is his real name.

I’d never actually seen Moriarty in person, only heard what Sherlock had said about him. I also managed to hack into Sherlock’s accounts and found he was not only taking rewards for solved crimes (which he had refused in front of me), but larger sums were coming in from all over the world.

Sherlock Holmes was Professor Moriarty. It was all a scam for money.

It’s always about money.

Before I could stop myself I found myself hiding in the trunk of the car that ‘Moriarty’ soon left the factory in. 

Original Picture Source

A few hours later the car came to a halt in what I guessed was a heavily wooded area. I would’ve gone out to investigate, but the risk of getting caught was far too high.

Again I must skip part of the story, as time is short.

I stayed put inside the trunk for a very long time, so long that I fell asleep. When I awoke the car was on the move again and the temperature had severely dropped.

I snuggled down in my coat and started wondering where we could possibly be heading now. However, sleep soon pulled me back under.

The next thing I knew was the massive bang as the trunk cover blew open.

The cold morning air seized me and held me frozen where I was.

A tall figure reached in with both hands, plucked me away from the darkness and cast me onto the road. My hands weren’t quick enough to keep my face from slamming into the road surface.

“Well, well Watson, it seems my game is up.”

Spitting blood, I struggled to gather myself and look up at the man I thought I had known for so long. As I raised my head I saw we were on a deserted bridge over the Thames. I turned to my attacker.

Original Picture Source

“You… Wh—who are you?”

“I know you’re not as much of an idiot as the rest of them Watson, I know you have me figured out.”

My heavy breathing caused mist to fire from my mouth in bursts as if from an agitated dragon. I was.... I was.... furious.

“Why did you lie to me? I thought I was your friend! Is it… Is it really all just for money?”

My voice trailed off at the end as hot tears started streaming down my face, I couldn’t help it, I felt cheated.

“Everything’s about money Watson, and I needed you with me to make it all genuine. Ingenious isn’t it? I organize the crime, harvest the profit, then ‘find’ a culprit and reap the rewards. Plus profit from the publicity.”

“You bastard!” I spat, causing blood to dot his trenchcoat, and with that I flew at him, fists at the ready. I grabbed him by the collar and hauled him towards the railings.

Original Picture Source

“If anything happens to me you’re a dead man Watson, you hear?! A dead man!”

“I don’t care! At least I will be doing some good in the world, which is more that can be said about you!”

And with that I broke free of the feeble grip he had on my wrists, grabbed him by the hair and threw him down hard onto the top rail. He fell heavily onto the path, dazed, but still able to reach into his trenchcoat to pull out his pistol.

Being a military man I stole it off him with ease, taking the time to break both his arms in the process.

The once proud man I had known started sobbing, knowing he was moments away from the end. But no-one was anywhere in sight or earshot to question the situation, or even help.

Breathing heavily as the adrenaline pulsed through my veins, I hoisted him over the top railings and let him drop over the side.

His broken face silently stared up at me in shock before he disappeared into the freezing river.

Rushing across to the other barrier I quickly loaded the gun and fired two shots at his head. The blood soon surrounded his now still body as it floated down the Thames.

Original Picture Source

“I’m not falling for that one again.”

Now I must go, there are people after me, and with everything I know being turned upside down, I can’t trust anyone anymore.

Word Count: 1093

Planning:

Sherlock Holmes is Moriarty, it’s a ruse set up between Mycroft (Sherlock’s older brother) and himself to gain money through both criminal activity and publicity with rewards.

Watson has suspected this for some time. He approached Mycroft about it and was laughed out of the building.

He’s been subject to random assassination attempts throughout the last few weeks, and Holmes has been increasingly distant from him.

Watson happens to hide in a factory where ‘Moriarty’ is actively giving orders after a final attempt on his life; he hides in the car which Moriarty will soon leave in.

The car leaves with both Holmes and Watson in it, it comes to stop somewhere where Watson doesn’t feel comfortable exiting. He waits.

Hours pass (night falls) and eventually Holmes drives away again, this time it stops in the heart of London on a bridge. This confuses Watson. While he is distracted Holmes pulls him from the back of the car suddenly, claiming he’s known that he’s been there the whole time.

They argue on the bridge and Watson confronts Holmes about his career and fraud life, which Holmes doesn’t deny it and is silent saying that he is amazed that Watson found out about it because he thought he’d covered his tracks so well.

Holmes then tries to push Watson off the bridge, saying he doesn’t want his ‘good life’ to end. But Watson, having been a soldier is slightly stronger and at the last minute breaks free of his grip and shoots him in the chest. Stunned, Holmes falls off and into the Thames. Watson hurries over to the other side to fire the lethal bullet (“I’m not falling for that one again,”).