Outside the Box 2

Character Study: Dennis and the hidden knowledge…

The street was quiet. There seemed to be a never ending downpour of soggy rain that tapped at the windows in the front of the store. The rain wouldn’t keep the regulars out though, in fact many would be inspired to drop by and look for just the right video for the night. The shelves inside were filled with heavily used but loved movies, most of which had not been converted to the next format for viewing. Some probably would not make it that far, and the heavy cassettes that protected the long delicate ribbon could not stop even the most general viewing from eventually stretching and tearing it’s precious cargo.

Dennis watched the rain for several hours and thought about the video store. It had been his only wish to share the same enjoyment and nostalgia that watching a VHS had brought him when he was young. Those days were filled with gunfights and giant spiders, immortals battling to be the last, an archeologist who taught by day and used whip by night, and more excitement packed into two hours than he could ever believe. It was everything that a bed stricken boy could want. TV was for the saps that were satisfied with stories that could be solved in less than thirty minutes. Movies were for those that did not need commercial breaks, and could understand plots that intertwined and looped around keeping you just on the edge of your seat. Dennis could play out the epic moments of all the greats, and did so throughout his days.

Outside the Box 1

Character Study: Juliette Gordon

I sat in the dark watching Micah sleep. Even at the midnight hour, his paleness was evident under the glow of lights from hospital gadgetry keeping him alive. A knock on the door interrupted my thoughts. It was Nurse Julia.

I had become accustomed to the flurry of activity in Mycah’s hospital room, but he certainly had not. In a previous outburst, he sat up in bed with his frail self and demanded, “What’s SHE doing here?” Another nurse. Another order. Another traumatic experience for Micah. But this time the medicine from Nurse Julia was for me.

She handed me a styrofoam cup with nonalcoholic champagne and whispered, “Happy New Year.”

Ringing in the new year at the hospital bedside of your child just diagnosed with cancer doesn’t paint a rosy picture for the future. My mind raced with gripping questions: Would Micah respond to treatment in 2005? Would I lose him? Would I lose myself? I was in a combined state of emotional denial and information overload. I dug deep for something to be grateful for.

As I reflected on the events of the last week in 2005, I observed a pattern of intriguing spiritual nearness. I could be grieving over a dead son had it not been for the kindness of a complete stranger who was eavesdropping on a conversation between Micah and myself just days earlier in our local bookstore.

Have you ever made a toast to God in a time of crisis? To thank Him for your struggles because He approved the course to shape you into a more compassionate human being? It is hard to embrace words of the Bible in 1 Thessalonians directing us: Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In every thing give thanks; for this is the will of God concerning you. It doesn’t come natural to do this. So I approached the supernatural to hold my hand amidst the ever present anxiety of confronting my deepest fear: MICAH COULD DIE.

I had been cocky to think I was immune from pain and despair. I saw it all around me as a manager of Oakwood Mobile Home Park. Now I was immersed in it. When I asked the One who gave me Micah to reveal Himself, He showed up. His arrival shook my narrow-minded world view of life and death.

The New Hub

Since the destruction of the previous Hub, Torchwood has secretly built a new hub for you. Your new hub is built from an abandoned subway station from the 1920′s. A  subway train passes by at 1 hour intervals and the passengers only see an abandoned station while they pass. This hub features some enhancements to it’s basic design, mainly multiple entrances. There are a total of 3 entrances each in different directions from each other, and each disguised. The north entrance looks like an access tunnel to the subway. The south entrance is your regular entrance with vehicles and looks like a parking garage with a high tech gate with level 6 locks. Finally an elevator rises directly to the street level from an enlarged phone kiosk that houses 10 phones. Each booth in the kiosk has tinted glass and each can lower to the Hub independently.

The Hub features all of the required rooms and access that you will need during your time here. Cells for prisoners, an autopsy area and morgue, computer room, interrogation room,armory,  meeting room, offices, and even some sleeping areas for you to rest between missions. I can post pictures before we built the hub but you’ll have to see the implements yourself once you arrive.

New Horizons

09/01/2009 : When we last played the entire hub was attacked by the organization known as F.O.R.T. The rift manipulator was damaged beyond full repair and an item of unknown origin was taken that was recently found by the team. Lucas Black, Hammond Cates, and Jack Daniels were all killed in action during the event. The hub lay in ruins after the assault and the computer known as Archimedes has been severely damaged. Most of the team is now separated and scattered, not knowing what will be next for the them.

05/10/2010: A letter has come to several of the previous members of Torchwood. A man named Spencer has come in from another “office” and will be rebuilding the previous operation and will include new recruits. The letters have no information or names, only that business will need to be resumed immediately. All interested parties will meet at the museum tower in 30 days for assignment. The letter states for recruits to please use the front office entrance to the building. Anyone who wishes not to return will be released permanently.