| Gabriel Michael Briggs |
 |
| Portrayed By: | Josh Brolin |
| Status: | Alive |
| Age: | 24 |
| Occupation: | Rancher |
| Significant Other(s): | Trista Katherine Reynolds-Briggs |
| Freak Factor: | Spirit Patron (Pele) |
Background
Life? That's an interesting subject. At the very least mine's rarely if ever been boring. Everything started out normal and just spiraled into that not so normal place. My parents, Paul and Jaime Briggs, decided on their honeymoon to Hawaii that they'd like to stay there. So they sold all their things back in Kansas City and started their lives miles away from anything they ever knew in a daily living paradise. If you ask me it wasn't a bad way to start a new life. Certainly had its benefits for me. I was born in a tropical paradise and never knew anything else for years.
I was born on December 15, 1987. The dead of winter, well as winter goes in Hawaii anyway. I've been told the 80's were a decade that you wouldn't understand unless you lived in it. I guess I'll never understand then. I was the second born, my sister Rena being born in June 1979. She has memories about the 80's, trying to be sixteen at six. Sometimes I see how she dresses and have to bite back the urge to tell her the 80's called and wanted their clothes. At any rate we were a happy clan living on the islands.
Then, around about my 8th birthday happy normal on a trop paradise turned into a severe case of 'what the Hell?'.
All my life there had been this one guy, Myron, always looking over me. It was like he was the uncle I never had. He was hilarious, boisterous, and God help you if you managed to flip that around to angry. A former member of the Navy, State Department, and Federal Bureau of Investigation: Anti-Terrorist division, he was not the sort of person you wanted to get on the bad side of. The joker and prankster was replaced by a very effective warrior even by Hawaiian standards. Needless to say from the time I was old enough he was training me in the martial arts. Jeet Kune Do primarily, but as I grew up Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and Aikido worked their way into the routine as well. My parents never understood why he took such an interest in me. He trained me for free and the rest of the class was still cheap at $15 a month for indicidual $30 a month for family. Rena was in and out of the program through school, but I was a lifer.
Ok. Proof positive I have trouble staying on path when talking. When I was eight years old Myron invited me to come to a luau of sorts. I'd been to several so I wasn't really surprised and my folks said I could go. All through the night the people, especially the older men, seemed to be taking their measure of me. Myron told me to be on my best behavior so I did. I was blissfully obedient back then. What happened? At the end of the luau there was a gathering of the elder warriors, yes warriors, and they told Myron and I to join them. Now to quote Han Solo "Here's where the fun begins." and it was not dull. The elders spoke around me to each other and Myron as well. Oh its normal to be the kid looking around at all the adults and being ignored. It's another thing all together to have some old dude point a finger at you suddenly and accuse you of being 'the chosen one'. Whoa. Chosen for what?
Fortunately Myron was behind me, so I couldn't turn and run out of there as they all started looking over me with everything short of a microscope in my orifices. I watched them, a certain portion of Myron's teachings starting to surface and the young warrior within surfacing with it. They spoke of me being of age, something about being accountable for my own actions or something. Whatever the case, they all were in agreement that I was the chosen one. The one that would join with Pele. Everyone seemed to be forgetting one thing. Me. In my mind I am thinking hey I believe in one God, not a bunch of minor deities and I flat sure am not wild about the thought of being joined to a volcano goddess even if I were to believe in all that. They must have sensed it because some seemed amused, one seemed creastfalled, and Myron just shook his head and made some jokes to tide things over as usual.
So I was set to be this great legendary warrior by the time the morning came. I didn't sleep. Who the heck could sleep? I went around the day in a daze, school was school…I think. When school let out Myron was waiting for me. He asked me if I read it. I said I had. He asked me what I thought and I told him I was ready to be a super hero. Wrong answer. All the way home he let me know about how I was to be a champion for the people, not some glorified, tights wearing, rescue kitties from the trees guy. I hate cats. Wrong answer again. He took me to the dojo and I discovered what real training was. From that point on I got the full treatment. Jeet Kune Do, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, and Aikido. Stand and fight, roll around on the ground, and use your opponents energy against them. It was an education. Though he never treated me unfairly, he worked me harder than anyone else and I loved him for it.
It was my Freshman year when things took another interesting turn. Myron would not grant the rank of black belt to anyone under 18, so I was a first degree brown in Jeet Kune Do waiting for that black. The other two I started later and it took longer. I tried tournament fighting, but the style just wasn't acceptable to the local competitions. That was the end of that. The summer leading up to my Freshman year I saw something else. My parents took us to a rodeo and I saw what I wanted to do. Eight seconds of pure adrenaline. The bull riders had the most incredible life and I decided it was for me too. My parents didn't approve, Rena said I was nuts, but as usual Myron came to my aid. He told them it would be good for my training in the martial arts. It would give me something else to obsess over besides waiting to get my black belt.
Oh, my first few rides were not pretty, but by the time season was in full swing I had a seat on the bull and was pretty good at keeping it. My family warmed up to it some, but they still didn't like it and I managed to get injured by stray horns more than once and my body scarred for my trouble. Still, it was the most fun you could have with your clothes on. I always thought that was just a saying until I rode my first 8 seconds. With the adrenaline came something Myron didn't apporve of so much. The spotlight. Had to say it fit me really well.
Life passes on and before I knew it I was sixteen and pretty much obsessed with getting to the National Finals Rodeo. Nothing else mattered other than class with Myron. The prophesy was in the back burner until my sixteeth birthday. Oh the usual stuff, promises of no car that were fulfilled and cake. After we had cake and ice cream I was ready to call it a night, but Myron had other plans. He invited me out for a ride so off we went into the evening sunset. We talked about a little bit of everything. My studies in Aikido and Jiu-Jitsu was starting to rival my understand of Jeet Kune Do. I'd likely recieve second degree black belts in all three the first day after I was 18. That was his system. Not black belt until 18, but once you've been a first degree brown that long it was straight to second degree black belt. He kept me distracted until we arrived at the base of a dormant volcano. I can't remember what he said the name of it was and I hadn't paid attention to where we were going.
I knew why we were there an instant after we arrived. There at the base of the volcano were four of the elders from the night eight years prior. They were wearing traditional garb of the Hawaiian warrior. Myron I realized had been wearing similar clothing and it never registered. I looked a bit strange in jeans and a black cowboy hat. These men were all were waiting for me and I knew why. I actually hesitated, but Myron pushed me along.
The elders lead me into a cave in the side of the volcano and that's when things got a little more odd than usual for me. We entered a small ante chamber that looked like it had been there for centuries. I looked around it and saw pictures of several interesting people. Most of them were of Hawaiian deities including Pele. The one none of them would speak of was a bearded white man, wearing robes and carrying a shepards hook staff that looked like a snake. My attention was moved to a dias in the middle of the chamber and that's when I realized how warm it was. A ramp lead over to the dias and below it was lava…real lava in the dormant volcano.
One of the elders motioned me to cross to the dias. Screw that was my first thought, but Myron's expression said it was too late for second thoughts. Reluctantly I crossed over to the dias and there I sat for about an hour while they chanted and summoned God only knew what. Finally, when I was about to demand they get me out of there I realized I was not alone anymore. I whipped around fast, settling into a modified cat stance and realized I was looking at the most beautiful woman I'd ever seen. Not a woman, a female spirit.
While they continued to chant, the spirit told me she was Pele to the Hawaiians. I never really put much thought in there being more than one God, so I was skeptical. Apparently I had spent too much time with cowboys because my English was starting to take a serious southern turn. Pele didn't understand me at first until I started speaking in the native tongue. At any rate, she told me she was here to accept the warrior of prophesy. The next thing I know the spirit jumped inside and and I collapsed on the ground, fetal position, and feeling like I was being burned from the inside.
I started to walk back towards Myron and the elders one of the elders threw four largish stones at me. I batted them away like they were flying in slow motion. Everything seemed to be in slow motion. The first promise was true. My reflexes were off the charts! There were bulls to ride for sure now.
That night they gave me a look at all my abilities and let me in on the one weakness the scroll of prophesy didn't mention. For the rest of my life I'd be weakened from the cold and actually injured if it was cold enough. Another elder came up to me and shoved me. Reactions managed to ease me back from the shove and I was instantly mad and ready to fight. Myron stepped in and told me I understood now the power and the responsibility it carried with it.
Before I left the volcano that night I discovered another problem with the gift. Real cold, blizzard cold…was painful. It hurt. The more or less shot me with a fire extinguisher to show me. They were right. Once it warmed off me I started feeling better fast. Another promise kept. Myron and the elders made me promise to uphold the gift and protect the secret as much as possible.
I slept hard that night. Apparently when a spirit bonds with you it takes the strength out of you too. I slept until almost noon the next day. Myron told my parents it was his fault. TOld them he took me rock climbing. That was true…from a certain point of view. That night he took me down town Honolulu and opened my eyes. As I walked down the street with him I started noticing differences between folks. Some seemed as they always had. One I saw had horns! What? He gave me an odd look as I stared at him and the girl with him didn't seem a bit bothered by his appearance. Myron told me later it was a glamour. He looked perfectly human to most. The one that made me most uneasy was the woman on the street corner. Obviously looking for money and very pale to my eyes. She she looked at me I could see her brow was ridged and her teeth were fangs. Again, seeing through the disguise.
It was time for rodeo again not long after that and it's amazing what happens to a person when he can see demons, vampires, and other magic creatures. You catch yourself staring at first, then after a while it isn't so bad. Another season down, sucessful at that. The experts said by the time I was 18 I'd be a force to be reckoned with. While my parents never really warmed up to the idea of me being in the rodeo, they liked it less when I started developing a southern drawl as opposed to my local sound. Spend enough time around these people you start to like the way they sound. It wasn't long and everyone was looking at me funny.
Life kept getting stranger. One night I woke from a dream of being cast into the volcano for failing Pele. I got the message and snuck out of the house. I didn't know where I was going, but I knew I had to go. I walked about a quarter mile from my house and heard a scream. I ran up the street to find a woman being cornered by a vampire. The creature was intent on killing her. I didn't think much of it at first. Three running steps and a hard jumping kick that I'd picked up watching TV. No jump kicks in any of my styles. The creature turned on me and the fight was on. He was stronger, maybe a little faster, but I was better. Strike, block, strike parry…good. He nailed me right between the eyes and sent me reeling. Stalking towards me with malice in his eyes, a look I'll never forget, he was ready to trade meals. The woman ran away and the vampire told me he was going to introduce me to fear and suffering. I managed to kick him right in the business as he reached me. I jumped up and punted him in the head. It was then I said something I never forgot,"Allow me to introduce you to my sista. Goddess of fire." A moment later I remember sweating and heat passing through me and erupting all over the vampire. He screamed and died very badly. When I turned around Myron and the elders were watching with approval. They taught me that using my knack for showmanship in what I did to set my enemies on edge. Apparently my first was a ringing success.
Year pass. I divided my time between battling monsters and getting better in the arena. The more I rode the more confident I got. The more confident I got the more demons and vampires I killed. Myron continued my training until the hardest day of my life. He went to bed for a nap and when his wife came home later he was gone. The power of the fire goddess/spirit should have been enough to curb my tears, but they were not. The man was as close to me as a father. It was a difficult time, trying to celebrate his life.
Without Myron in my life the elders feared I might lose my way. They had no reason to fear. A month after Myron's life celebration I encountered a demon. An ice based demon. Our first three interactions ended well for him, bad for me. Fire melts ice, but ice cools fire. One night I realized what I was doing wrong. He was planning to cover Oahu with a blizzard. I realized that if I really let go…really let loose the power of Pele as well as the martial arts he could not beat me. It was a battle for the ages ending with me kicking him flush on the jaw and knocking him out. Before he gained conciousness again I incinerated him by hurling him into a pig roasting pit and turning my power to the highest I could handle. He went up in the blaze of glory.
As things got more and more active, I got to be less and less popular. Despire my parent's misgivings and the elders as well, I went on the road in the main land. I wanted to get the heat away from my family and it worked. The elders saw to their safety and I started working as a cowboy full time. I didn't see National Finals Rodeo success until I was 22.
Six months before my championship ride, I got hurt pretty bad. Most folks thought I would be out by the time the finals arrived. A horn spear in the chest. I was in Phoenix and it was there I encountred the woman of my dreams. Resident Dr. Trista Reynolds. She was beautiful beyond beautiful. I knew I'd need an ally to say I was OK to leave the hospital especially since the holes were already closing before I saw her. She told the hospital staff I was OK and ready to go free. She tells everone else I begged her to get me cleared to ride. She wasn't surprised by my fast recovery, but she didn't mention why. We were however joined at the hip from then on.
One night we were out on the town and we ran up against a pair of vampires. They attacked and I just knew I'd never keep her safe. I didn't have to. She fought as good as me or either of them. My vamp tried his best and ended up meeting my 'sista'. The other died in a burst of dust at the end of a stake in her hand. If I wasn't in love with her before I was then. We talked for a long time after we…compensated for the adrenaline. She learned what I was and I learned of Totem Warriors. The owl. Her wisdom shone through.
Trista and I went to Las Vegas together. She was returning home and I was there for the National Finals Rodeo. Nobody wins all ten rides in ten days. I was nine for ten and the title of world champion was mine. Right there in the middle of the arena I did what any showman would do. I called Trista out of the stands and hit a knee infront of everyone in the arena and everyone watching at home. I asked her to marry me. She said yes.
We had a desert marriage, west of Las Vegas. It was everything she asked for since I had plenty of money after the finals. Add that to some lucrative endorsements for Wrangler and Justin Boots, and we were set for a while. I took her to Hawaii for our honeymoon. I miss my islands, but I just don't fit there anymore. When we returned I recived a parcel from Hawaii. It was labeled having been mailed by Myron. Inside was a letter saying that he loved me like a son. He also said that there would come a time this letter would find me and that I would be surprised to learn my destiny. As I read it, he told me that I was to go to Las Vegas, already there, and that something big was coming there. I needed to be ready. I was in Las Vegas and the letter was written to me a week before he died. Apparently someone had been hanging on to it. Myron must have been some sort of clairvoyant or something knowing where we would be.
For a wedding gift I made a large purchase and bought Trista a ranch on the south end of the city. She loved it and it became the center of my existence when she was not around. Her practice, me working on the ranch…it made us not so much rich as comfortable. For the first year I rarely wandered off the ranch. Maybe now that it is going better I can afford a ranch hand and not have to exist only on the ranch.
I don't get out much because of my work. Trista is busy as well. Hopefully now that things are settling down some we can be a couple again. If we get a chance to slap some bad guys around a little more than of late even the better. Something is coming. We need to be familiar with the people and the city. We need to be ready.
Logs
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