AuthorTopic: [ORG] The Evening Star (short story preview)  (Read 12972 times)

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Offline Arcademan

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[ORG] The Evening Star (short story preview)
« on: March 27 2009, 01:19 am »
Inside a community hospital outside of the 'big city' a doctor confronts his
patient:



"Well, after running through several tests, I'm afraid there is some bad news.
You do have the unmistakable symptoms of cancer but the good news...it's been
detected early and I think..."



"What do you mean GOOD NEWS?!! This is CANCER we're talking about!!!" The woman
patient began to cry uncontrollably. "My whole life is ruined...RUINED!!!" and
nothing but sobbing could be heard as the lights faded.



CUT!!! And that's a wrap, folks!!!" yelled a voice though a megaphone as a bell
went off and all the lights came back on. The hustle and bustle of a camera crew
and personel came alive, scrambling around like ants at a picnic as the crying
woman sprang up from the bed, wiped away her tears and flashed a big smile.

"Great job as always, Jennique!" said a crew hand as they began to tear down and
put away the stage set. She stepped down and headed to her dressing room,
accepting accolades along the way for a heartfelt, moving scene.



Welcome to the exciting world of television and the daytime drama commonly
referred to as a 'soap opera' and for Jennique Britnae, the life and splendor of
the business is all she's known...the star of the series "Live For Tomorrow."



Inside her posh dressing room, Jennique sits down in front of the mirror to do
some facial touch-ups after another long day. Despite having a very youthful
appearance, it was still hard to believe the Miss Britnae's age was close to 50
years. She became part of the cast 35 years ago as the spunky yet lovable Jenny
Summers and became an immediate hit and fan favorite. During all the years, not
only did she grow up on the show, the viewing audience also watched her grow
from a teenager to a young woman. She became a household name amongst daytime
viewers and with that, the aclaim and awards came along, winning close to two
dozen daytime TV awards for her effort. Despite all the years on the air,
Jennique could easily pass for a mid-20's model.



Suddenly there was a known on the door and a man popped his head in. "You
decent, Jen?!!" It was her agent Sam Johns.



"I'm always decent, Sam. That's part of my charm. So...what's the good word?"
asked Jennique in her typical cheerful voice.



A somewhat sad look could be detected in his voice. "Sorry, Jen. I've talked to
everyone 'til I was blue in the face...no dice. You've been on the show so long
and been playing Jenny Summers all this time...everyone sees you as her and
because of that, no other studio wants to take a chance and hire you in a movie
or another series."



A sad look of dejection came over Jennique but she didn't let it show. She
flashed her trademark smile and told Sam "Well' Sam...keep trying. Though I love
"Live For Tomorrow" and wouldn't trade this experience for a lifetime, I still
long for a chance to appear in a movie, mini-series or something."



"You know, kiddo...despite all of this gloom and doom news, you still keep that
smile and upbeat attitude. I tells you, it's their loss for not considering you.
So...meet you later on at the bar for a nightcap and go over some more stuff,
per usual?"



"No problem, Sam though let's make it an hour later than usual? I have a few
errands to run in a bit. No down for me as you know..." as Jennique began to
gather her belongings.



"Still wish I could bottle what you have, Jen. You get maybe three or four hours
of sleep if even that a night and you'll as fresh as a rose." Sam said as he
held the door open for the actress as the both of them prepared to leave.
Jennique was diagnosed with a rare disorder that allowed her not to require much
sleep and not hinder or allow her life to have any negative after-effects.



As the two headed to the parking lot, a stage hand stopped them on the way out.
"Did you hear? That mystery guy showed up again last night and foiled a couple
of robberies." A small crowd gathered around a television set and the news
program detailing the events. The announcers spoke...



"Once again as been the case for several nights, a cloaked being was involved in
capturing known criminals. While the police and officially condeming his
actions, the public are falling for the hero. There has been sightings and from
what officals have told the media, it appears the mysterious person that has
graced the skyline has been dressed in a different costume and has shown
different physical appearances, leading to speculation that there is at least
three if not more people involved, like a army of the night. We'll pass on more
information when we have it..."



Sam tugged on Jennique's arm. "Come on...time is money. As the two drove away,
Sam speculated out loud. "Tells you what...whoever those guys are playing
nighttime hero...people are looking up from the crime-infested neighborhoods and
feeling good for once. Wish I could find out who they are...I'd make a great
agent for them."



Jen smacked Sam upside the head. "You're MY agent and don't forget that. Still,
I think you're right. Kind of makes you compare that...what's the news calling
him or them...'The Evening Star' to an actor albeit a bad one. From the pics
I've seen, it have to be several people playing the role."



The car slowed down and stopped in front ot the Star Hotel...where Jennique
lived. Sam gave her a light peck on the cheek. "Finish your errands and I'll see
you later tonight. Take care, Jen." After waving goodbye, Jen went to her
apartment to put her stuff away and change clothes.



Later on as her apartment was seemingly empty and void of any light source save
for the blinking night lights of the city, a shadow glided across the sky and
ran effortlessly along the rooftops, a long flowing cape and by its action, a
determination and dedication to erradicate the city of crime. The night belong
to the person known as The Evening Star.

"Everything will surely be all right." 「絶対大丈夫だよ。」, "Zettai daijōbu da yo."
"Force without Master, heed the call of my Staff of Dreams, and become my power! SECURE!!!"
Neo-Geo: Come for the games, stay for teh drama!

Offline Arcademan

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Re: [ORG] The Evening Star (short story preview)
« Reply #1 on: January 09 2012, 01:06 pm »
Almost three years later, I may finally have plans for this particular story.

"Everything will surely be all right." 「絶対大丈夫だよ。」, "Zettai daijōbu da yo."
"Force without Master, heed the call of my Staff of Dreams, and become my power! SECURE!!!"
Neo-Geo: Come for the games, stay for teh drama!

Offline Arcademan

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Re: [ORG] The Evening Star
« Reply #2 on: February 27 2012, 02:15 pm »
March 2012: "In The Beginning..."

In the beginning...you'd have to wind back the hands of the clock fifty years
ago where a beautiful girl was born to loving parents somewhere in the suburbs.
Where exactly is not known to the child who would one day become a household
name to everyone who spent their daytimes glued to the television sets watching
one of the most beloved and longest running TV series today...

"Live For Tomorrow" starring Jennique Britnae as Jenny Summers.

For well over 35 years, she has entertained the audience, first as a teenager
finding her place in Happy Harbor, the ficticious town where the soap opera
resides, to the superstar where she's the center of attention as her numerous
awards and trophies can contest to. However, her life before TV stardom has been
a mystery and not just to the adorning public at large...but to Jennique
herself.

The sad realization behind her early years are carefully hidden and it's hard to
say who out there has any idea on what the truth really is. The 'official' story
is that Jennique started out as a ward of the TV studio and while this seems
far-fetched in today's society, it was quite common throughout the golden age of
Hollywood and the movie industry. The earliest known history of Miss Britnae was
a series of commercials done several years prior to being casted for Live For
Tomorrow, then a soap opera that's been on the air for several years however was
losing their audience to newer daytime series and talk shows so as a way for the
youths to relate to at least one reoccurring character, Jennique was added to
the show as a teenage runaway who settled down and found a new life with a new
family in Happy Harbor as Jenny Summers. She did cameo appearances to see if the
viewers would warm up to her and after a few weeks, they did...

They most certainly did.

Live For Tomorrow shot up in the ratings, many tuning in just to see the new
starlet of the scene. Her spunky attitude, while showing she was a nice and
well-spoken young teenager, hid a dark, terrible secret that had the audience
wanting more to see how she would fare in the secluded town and week after week,
which turned into years, she didn't disapoint. Of course Jen always said it was
the writers and producers who should get all the credit as well as the others
who've been on the show since the start but the spotlight stayed on Jennique
Britnae. Others might have had some resentment on how much attention she was
getting however unlike most chls stars that make it big, Jen never turned her
back on her fellow actors and crew of the series as she bent over backwards to
make sure they too got the recognition she felt they all deserved but that's
what makes Jennique special.

The only thing known about her early life was that she and her parents were
involved in a horrific accident that claimed thier lives and put Jennique in a
coma for over 5 years. Amazingly she woke up without any permament damage to her
body and according to tests, her brain functions were that of a normal girl her
age, which even with the advances of modern medicine, still baffles doctors and
scientists today on how she made an almost full recovery after being in a coma
for so many years.

We said "almost full recovery..."

It took over six months to get her motor skills functioning fully and while she
retained much of her reading and learning skills, she was schooled for several
months to get her back in touch with the real world, which was to be expected
from somebody in her condition however there were two little exceptions...

She had absolutely no memories of her life before her accident...not even an
inkling of it or who her parents really were and if Jennique Britnae was
actually her real name. The other little issue...she seem to have a special
condition which allows her to go several days without the need of sleeping but
retains her vigor and vitality as though she slept and rested like a regular
person. As the doctors explained once, it's as though her body pumps out
adrenaline constantly and consistantly and if needed, she can tap into it at any
given moment giving her body and mind full function without any prolonged rest.

After a year of rehabilitation, Jennique was ready to leave the hospital and go
on with her life but what life did she have? No parents or known relatives, she
found that it was the TV Studio Cloverleaf Productions that paid for all of her
medical expenses and offered her a place to stay and a chance to start a new
life. Honestly, there was no way she could turn them down. Though she had many
questions about her past, the studio heads had repeatedly told her that they
knew nothing about the tragic accident nor did the local authourities or law
enforcement know about the events.

It was though it never happened but the fact that Jennique was still alive was
proof enough. Even the hospital, which listed her initially as 'Jane Doe' knew
her actual name but for some reason the name 'Jennique Britnae' seemed right to
her from the start, also warming up to the shorter name Jen.

Jennique was first sent to a foster home to familiarize herself with other
children her age and to go to school to resume her learning. While many of the
kids were adopted to foster parents, nobody gave Jen a look, which saddened her
and put her into depression, not realizing that the studio were preventing their
'future star' a chance of what one would consider a normal life. It was only
after Jen ran away from the home and tried to jump off a cliff outside of town
that the studio boss realized what a error this was to exposed the young girl to
and after finding her, assured Jen that she would always be taken care of for
the rest of her life.

The court approved the studio taking charge of the young girl until she turned
18 years old. Jennique found herself now living in an apartment in the plush
Star Hotel, minutes away from the Cloverleaf Studios. She had her own tutor and
her playground was the studio lots where she started her path on the way to
daytime stardom, first in a series of local commercials which she had the knack
of playing different characters with unique personalities, which definitely was
a big advantage in getting your foot in the door in this line of work.
Cloverleaf itself produced several TV series but its pride and joy was 'Live For
Tomorrow'. It was the first TV series produced and while it was going on its
10th anniversary, many viewers and critics gave the notion that its best years
were behind it and that the end was already written on the wall. Worse was that
three of the latest daytime TV series Cloverleaf came out with failed to gain an
audience and were cancelled or overhauled to try to get their share in the
ratings war.

When Cloverleaf Studios, once the undisputed king of daytime TV was in their
darkest hour, they turned to the one person they hoped could turn things
around...Jennique Britnae.

But did she have what it took to take Live For Tomorrow and Cloverleaf out of
the dark despair and into a new age?

She did...and then some.

<continued in next post...>
« Last Edit: February 27 2012, 03:08 pm by Arcademan »

"Everything will surely be all right." 「絶対大丈夫だよ。」, "Zettai daijōbu da yo."
"Force without Master, heed the call of my Staff of Dreams, and become my power! SECURE!!!"
Neo-Geo: Come for the games, stay for teh drama!

Offline Arcademan

  • Hero of CLOW Empire & the Arcademan Universe!
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Re: [ORG] The Evening Star
« Reply #3 on: February 27 2012, 02:17 pm »
<Continued from previous post...>

Three years after her debut on the show, Jennique became a regular cast member
and now promising superstar. Mob scenes followed her when she made personal
appearances at local stores and shopping centers. She won her first Daytime Emmy
for supporting character in a daytime TV drama with many more in the future.
However it was the beginning of her fourth season on Live For Tomorrow that got
the studio worried as her 18th birthday was approaching, which made her a legal
adult with no binding obligations to stay with Cloverleaf Studio. Jen could
leave anytime and the money she earned and was put in a special trust fund until
she turned 18 was also hers to do as she pleased per the court mandate.

Fortuantely Cloverleaf had nothing to worry about as Jennique decided to not
only stay with the studio and the show but signed an open-end contract
guaranteed to keep her her working relationship with Cloverleaf for what could
be the rest of her life. She did have a couple of provisions...

She wanted to stay close so she had the studio buy the entire penthouse top
floor of the Star Hotel and make it her permament home since shwas still
traumatized by her stay in the foster home, she knew of no ther home than the
hotel. She also wanted certain luxuries of her own bidding such as make-up,
clothing and other special amenities. In doing so, she told the studios she'd
continue to play Jenny Summers and never ask for a day off since she didn't have
a life outside of the studio and the show...

All for scale pay.

After the lawyers notarized all paperwork and signings, it was a done deal. As
the years went by, Jenny Summers appears as always on Live For Tomorrow, did
talk shows and appearances and did it all with a smile and limitless enegy. Some
close to her found it wierd that during the entire time she was on the show, not
once did she ever show up tired, nor never seem to get sick and if you look at
her first appearance years ago, in fact appeared to not age. She was a bit
taller but her face was as youthful as ever. Were drugs involved in her personal
life, which was just that when she wasn't at work?

For the tabloids, this was certainly catching their attention as they would
always try non-ethical tactics to get their stories printed, whther the truth or
not and they didn't care wh got hurt in the process since the gol was to sell
papers and lots of them. In an effort to protect the interest of Jennique and
Cloverleaf Studios, they hired a shrewd agent to handle damage control by the
name of Sam Johns. A former tabloid reporter in the past as well as a police
detective, he knew what to expect from the tabs and how to handle tough
situations however as he met met Jennique Britnae for the first time, both of
their worlds would head toward a different direction.

Next: Enter The Evening Star...
« Last Edit: February 27 2012, 03:08 pm by Arcademan »

"Everything will surely be all right." 「絶対大丈夫だよ。」, "Zettai daijōbu da yo."
"Force without Master, heed the call of my Staff of Dreams, and become my power! SECURE!!!"
Neo-Geo: Come for the games, stay for teh drama!