The Gift (Phoenix)

[Gabriel Seran]

The Gift

From the expansive city of San Diego it was very hard to legitimately find someone much less pursue them, though Gabriel being in league with both the mob and several military associative groups had grown up with his fair share of ties. As the young man sat back pensively in his stretch limousine he read through psych reports of the students that'd taken part in his little event. He'd studied and analyzed them backwards and forwards knowing each and everyone exactly as they were. Though that was but the facade they put up, there was much more that made up people than the surface, something he'd learned over his prior attempts to vanguard his own legacy.

Curling his beard he'd finished up Kevala's file adding in his own report because simply put he knew her better than anyone else, tossing it aside he'd come upon Phoenix. Or rather a Phillipe Nixon. Quite perplexing why a person would change their name, though Gabriel suspected it had less to do with the fact that he was in some sort of trouble and rather some symbolic gesture from the past. A symbol of the boy's future no doubt, Phoenixs' symbolizing rebirth from fire and ashes no doubt accumulating that he'd held some form of hardship he'd trampled over and wanted to leave in the wake of a future that held pyre to greater and greater things.

Gabriel smiled, curious a boy driven by ambition no doubt but one with flaws as well. He'd surmise flipping through the files slowly taking his time to linger his attention onto details rather than bolded facets. During his little challenge he'd seen that Phoenix showed an inability to cope to teamwork, and later though surveillance noticed he didn't follow to a structured means of leadership. These things he'd seen in himself no doubt but the major difference was an overwhelming pride that forced hesitation rather than action. That was the flaw.

"Driver.. Turn onto Rue de Vinyard." Gabriel would say without looking up as he traced the movements of the vehicle before the car would turn onto the street slowing as a familiar figure was placed on the roadside. Predictable.

Phillipe the large dark skinned man would be siting across from Gabriel moving only enough to be briefly noticed as he peeled open the side door and would grab Phoenix and yank the boy inside roughly tossing him to contact the other side of the car where if he struggled would only find himself pinned by Phillipe.

"Calm Phoenix, Calm."

[Phoenix]

OoC: Just kind of presumed that Gabriel had some kind of surveillance on Phoenix, if not I can change the post or it can be attributed to his paranoia about being followed/being under surveillance

Phoenix had been taking the exact same route to and from his favourite café in San Diego. A week ago he had been struck with the feeling that he was being followed, it was never an unpleasant feeling to Phoenix, more so it was a feeling that he enjoyed… Immensely. Each day the feeling grew and grew until Phoenix decided that today he would walk along the roadside to the café just to provoke his follower even more. It was also on this day that Phoenix wondered if his senses were fooling him. There was no way to be sure that he was being followed or monitored, it was just instinct. After tomorrow, he promised to himself, he would resume his usual method of getting to the café; that being a random route every time.

Turning right into a street only a few blocks away from the café, Phoenix would glimpse up to the street sign despite already knowing the name of the street. It helped him blend into the crowd of common people that walked around the streets of San Diego at this time of day. The street sign read, as always, Rue de Vinyard. Continuing to walk along the roadside, Phoenix would reach down to his collar and pick up one of the iPod headphones that lay there. Pushing the earbud into his ear, Phoenix would reach into his pocket and turn up the volume as Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto In D started. The music flowed from the earbud into Phoenix’s mind as he predicted the next note of every verse perfectly; soon his gait matched that of the music.

The sound of a car engine could be heard as it pulled up next to Phoenix for a brief second before he was wrenched from his upright position and thrown with force into the car. Feeling a sharp pain erupt in his back as it connected with the other side of the car. Moving slowly so as to not cause any further injuries or provoke any reactions from the occupants of the car, Phoenix would place his hands on the floor and raise himself up into a seated position where he had landed.

Casting his eyes around the inside of the car, he would see a familiar figure. A very large and dark man sat on one side of the car looking ready to move should Phoenix do anything stupid or sudden, he was easy to recognise as Phoenix wasn’t going to forget the challenge that he had recently faced during school hours. The figure opposite the large, dark man was unknown to Phoenix but carried an ear of importance and intelligence.

Calm Phoenix, Calm.”

Phoenix cast his amethyst eyes around the interior of the car once again, absorbing as much information about his surroundings as he could before he would simply stare back at the unknown figure clearly sending the unspoken message that he was always calm or unemotional.

“Can I help the two of you?”

[Gabriel Seran]

Emerald hues triggered from the corner of the car spectator much as they normally did taking into account all the boy's attributes physically that could be managed, not simply based off of muscle and height but rather attributing a focus towards the way he carried himself and the mannerism in which he reacted. It was all easy enough to conclude who he was. There'd been harder puzzles to solve in his life, this boy was no different or special as a stand out however in that reasoning alone Gabriel second guessed himself going against the human nature to demean and speak down to such a person and rather give him the opportunity for Gabriel to be proven wrong.

“Can I help the two of you?”

What an odd reaction to start off with. Perhaps the boy had been no stranger to kidnap, or perhaps he knew it was foolish to struggle. Either way the cards were all still within Gabriel's hand giving him free reign to apply pressure where needed.

A tug at the corner of Gabriel's cheek as he sized the boy up physically. Taller no doubt, a head taller give or take but then again Phillipe dwarfed the boy making the natural intimidation factor shrink in comparison. Sturdy build signaled that he was nowhere near weak at least by most people's standards went however as Gabriel sized over the records in his hand the boy had been seen as a tag along to Jack. Yes in Gabriel's mind he pegged the Jack boy to be a clear idiot possibly borderline mental retardation but enough about Tuvlan considering each of the boys could definitely fight. Yes the staunch comparison made Phoenix out to be an idiot in Gabriel's mind no doubt lesser in that facet and the Challenge he'd set up earlier in the weak didn't disprove that belief either. Then again most people such as Kazuya and even the boy Argent had considered themselves smart as well and they were capsized with the littlest of efforts. Perhaps his better qualities were better weighted on a game of another sort.

A hand would raise from his lap directed at Phillipe to calm himself and lower his guard at the moment. The large brute no doubt highly agitated by the situation he'd been put in though dutifully obeyed lowering his guard but keeping his grey eyes heavily locked on Phoenix to observe any movements made be it foul or otherwise.

"Well from what I see your records state that you are quite the strategist and being the man I am I feel so inclined as to challenge you to a game so to speak."

Gabriel would say in an elegant tone his hands moving to demonstrate that he held no gun to the boys head, this was but a friendly competition, a competition that were under his rules.

[Phoenix]

Phoenix watched the unknown figure carefully, he wasn’t to worried about the man he had seen before. He was just the muscle used to implement the operations, the brains came from the man that Phoenix didn’t know. Confirming this, the unknown man raised a single hand from his lap and directed it at the other man. Phoenix saw the dark-skinned man relax a little and lower his guard but not drop it completely.

“Well from what I see your records state that you are quite the strategist and being the man I am I feel so inclined as to challenge you to a game so to speak.”

Phoenix saw the hand movements denoting that no direct harm would come from this unknown man but that didn’t mean that the darker man wouldn’t do something if he was ordered to. Pushing himself up from the ground slowly, Phoenix would make his way over to one of the seats that lined the limo and sit down in a comfortable position.

“You want to play a game? I’ll admit I’m intrigued. However, whatever reports you have, depending on where you got them, will probably have false/outdated information. I applaud you for acquiring them nonetheless.”

[Gabriel Seran]

“You want to play a game? I’ll admit I’m intrigued. However, whatever reports you have, depending on where you got them, will probably have false/outdated information. I applaud you for acquiring them nonetheless.”

Gabriel sensed the sort of tone to his words, less than that of his voice more so the accuracy of his words seemingly confident in his abilities, perhaps all too much so for that reasoning alone. Out of the corner of his eye noticing Phillipe tensing up angrily at the assumption that Phoenix was talking down to his master, only to receive a staunch smile on Gabriel's features. There were many ways to be acknowledged the most flawed however was through force and words, yes he'd seen as much from the past antagonists he'd fought against, all of their power based on flexing an invisible muscle and ego that had stifled their growth. Weaknesses were often strengths too in their own ways.

"Oh I assure you I'm very well informed.." Gabriel would chuckle lightly as he siphoned through the manila envelope he held within his grip. "No doubt it's not hard to figure you're friends with the pillars of your school at least one or two of them so judging my guess isn't all too impressive, however you show a great tenacity to be unable to work with others.... such a shame."

Gabriel would coo quietly not granting the boy his attention but rather crossing his legs in a relaxed fashion sure he'd not strike out and in his own little way acting the part of the puppeteer antagonizing him with his superiority or at the very least his assumption of such.

"But your friend Jack no doubt has been quite the ambitious fellow no doubt... Definitely outshining you, Pillar, Captain of a few sports teams, and a relationship with the School Captain; while you Phillipe Nixon are but a blip on the radar. Please do explain."

Gabriel's tone completely harsh and unrelenting on the details a cold expression facing him in return while still not directing eye contact. There was more to people than what facts and numbers could tell and Gabriel would resolve just that, by pushing him into a corner not of his choosing, antagonizing him and watching him break down or grow from such turmoils.

[Phoenix]

Phoenix watched the scene in front of him as he spoke. The dark skinned man seemed to tense at his words, possibly with anger. Good, thought Phoenix, he shouldn’t be too difficult to read if he can’t control simple emotions. Turning his eyes back to the unknown figure in front of him, Phoenix wouldn’t find any reaction to his words at all. Phoenix felt the beginnings of a half smile play about his lips, he was definitely going to enjoy this game .

The words that Phoenix heard, on the surface, seemed to be impressive and reveal a deep knowledge of his activities, personality and friend selection, however, to Phoenix, these words were nothing more than stating the obvious. Clapping mockingly, albeit softly, Phoenix would reply.

“Stating the obvious doesn’t confer an informed state. ”

The half smile would manifest fully now as Phoenix knew that boredom was not going to trouble him for a while. As the unknown figure adjusted his position, Phoenix would wait patiently for him to speak once again. In this time Phoenix reflected on how similar this unknown character seemed to be to himself, the outward projection of knowledge, the confidence, the smugness, the manipulation, it was all there. These thoughts were interrupted by a comparison to his friend, Jack, all delivered without eye contact curiously enough.

“Yes, subtlety has never been one of his strengths. Also, I retract my previous statement. You have managed to uncover my real name; this places you within a select number of people in this country. ”

Amethyst eyes would eye off the figure opposite him in an intrigued manner, they understood what was happening. This man was trying to gain a psychological advantage over him, he was trying to use words to force him into submission and to detain him. A part of Phoenix wondered if this was the game that he had mentioned before but mostly Phoenix lay in anticipation for a real challenge and not some pointless game of words that would reveal no victor.

“Despite you knowing my name, I know not of yours. Do you have a name you are known by? Or do you prefer the shadows of anonymity as I once did.”

[Gabriel Seran]

Not exactly, While yes the game was that of a psychological essence it had deeper meanings that simply caging a beast or serving to stroke his ego by subverting the boy into a state of submission, no all those goals could be easily enough been accomplished by a fight of fists. Gabriel had finer tastes in his game play they included manipulation of course seeing as each piece had its specific worth the first phase was simply understanding, pressing and prodding for weaknesses and strengths. So essentially it wasn't the game itself that Gabriel was playing but rather the game within the game. As he smiled and nodded as the boy simply confirmed something he already knew.

“Despite you knowing my name, I know not of yours. Do you have a name you are known by? Or do you prefer the shadows of anonymity as I once did.”

A slight tug at the corner of his lips as Gabriel managed something that could be taken as a smile, the fact that the boy was comparing himself to Gabriel was a staunch mistake. While the topical layer many things could be assimilated and compared the boy knew nothing of greater details and the same could be said of Gabriel it was what drove them that was important, not so much their outward masks.

"You may call me Gabriel Seran, and it'd be wise of you not to mention this meeting before your Captain lest you spur some ill will..."

Gabriel would smile inwardly, the thought expressed to himself that when you tell a kid not to do something they went ahead and did it, reverse psychology. And besides what fun would this be if Kevala didn't know he was fucking around with her students.

"So Phoenix.... would it be safe for me to assume that you changed your name and now portray a life of social ambiguity because you cannot console with the fact that you have a great many shortcomings that your 'friends' see fit to point out to you all to many times and to face a world with no face, no identity is safe?"

Gabriel would muse quietly his eyes closing for a second as he set aside the folder leaning back to settle his hands in his lap and finally settle his eyes on the boy. "Or am I wrong?" Either way Gabriel would walk out with a bit more knowledge than before.

[Phoenix]

“You may call me Gabriel Seran, and it’d be wise of you not to mention this meeting before you Captain lest you spur some ill will…”

A momentary flicker of recognition appeared in his eyes as Phoenix placed the name to the face. So this was the infamous Gabriel Seran, the man who lay behind almost everything that transpired in the school. This was something that he had been waiting for ever since he had heard about this man’s deeds and actions.

“I wouldn’t dream of mentioning to the captain.” Phoenix’s half smile would turn into a sinister chuckle at the thought of mentioning it to Kevala. “Why would I take the fun out of something like this by informing her?”

The chuckle returned to a stoic expression as Phoenix knew that his words had spoken his emotions for him. This was going to be umpteen times more fun and enjoyable without anyone else’s input or involvement.

Moving his attention from the occupants of the car to the tinted windows that lined the car, the scenery provided a moment of respite from the word games that were taking place inside the car. Turning his head back to the interior of the car it wasn’t at all surprising to see the Gabriel was speaking again.

“So Phoenix.... would it be safe for me to assume that you changed your name and now portray a life of social ambiguity because you cannot console with the fact that you have a great many shortcomings that your 'friends' see fit to point out to you all to many times and to face a world with no face, no identity is safe? Or am I wrong?”

A glint of a smile appeared on Phoenix’s lips as he dissected the question and found a major flaw in it. He wasn’t going to provide Gabriel with anything solid just yet; there was no fun in that at all.

“It’s never safe to assume, Gabriel.”

[Gabriel Seran]

“It’s never safe to assume, Gabriel.”


It was a shame it really was that Phoenix wasn't bound to tell Kevala, in all honesty it'd make things a bit more interesting. Though in the end it'd be of no consequence to him if she interfered or not. All pieces were in play at the moment and he'd see the end result though touching and seeing were two very different results. A small smile as he plotted within the confines of his mind a true warriors greatest asset.

Quickly realizing that he was indebted to a man by the name of Johnathan Winters for that tomb of information. Without it Gabriel was much like Kale or even Jack, simply a mindless warrior who fought to win and eventually lose. Yes a common misunderstood fact about fighting was strategy. Even losing was a tactic. It didn't matter until one had accomplished the end goal dominating the war not the battles.

"Yes.. of course not." He'd mumble to himself silently as the car slowed at a corner eventually coming to a stop.

The rocking gestures of the wheels until outside the doors clicked opening and giving way to Gabriel's exit. As a trained soldier Phillipe's eyes lingered on the boy sending him the gesture to follow suit and to be quick about it.

Gabriel's hands would fold behind his back, a confident stature showing that he was not threatened or that he was confident enough to take on a foe without the use of his hands. He'd done this very same thing to Kevala although fighting with one arm and fighting completely unarmed were wholly different.

"So tell me Phoenix, what do you see..." Gabriel would gesture downward as the environment became much more than just another stop on the road. Around them was a large enveloping cliff that stared over a mass of peoples on the beach jostling amongst waves and pressing for attention. The flurry of colors and aromas was intoxicating to the senses.

Insight was a powerful thing. Expressing meaning, purpose, and symbolism. It could reveal a person long before their actions took place and much outranked their words. [/color][/font]

[Phoenix]

Phoenix sat in silence; it was the safest and probably the smartest thing to do as Gabriel sat in what seemed to be a retrospective state until he seemed to mumble something indefinable to Phoenix from such a distance. Phoenix felt the car slowing down until it rocked on its wheels and came to a complete halt, seeing both the door open a Gabriel disappear through them, he would notice the merciless eyes of the dark-skinned man upon his form, taking this as more than enough incentive to exit the car, he would climb through the small doorway.

Blinking for a quick moment to allows his body to correct his eyes so that they weren’t shocked by the sudden increase of light, Phoenix would walk up beside Gabriel and stick his hands into his pockets, feeling the familiar coldness of his lighter. He would switch his eyes from the scene before him to the man beside him and gaze at him from the corners of his eyes. Phoenix placed him at 6 ft 2” perhaps 6 ft 3”, slightly older than himself but no older than 21 and one extremely intelligent and devious man. Turning his eyes back to the front, Phoenix would allow a smile to creep across his features as he imagined how strong he would be in four years.

“So tell me Phoenix, what do you see…”

Phoenix’s eyes would follow the gesture of Gabriel’s hand gesture and find himself looking down, over the top of the cliff they were standing on, into a crowded beach are where normal people were acting out their normal lives completely oblivious to those above. The sounds and smells of the beach and the people drifted up towards Phoenix and Gabriel as he paid closer and closer attention to the scene in front of him. Seconds turned to minutes as he watched the people down below.

“I see people. People and families. Some will take control of themselves and become more than what they thought possible, others won’t. It all comes down to determination, intelligence and a desire to achieve what others have said you can’t.”