CHRIS LONGO from Triumph and Trouble
Bio provided by author:
After years of wrong-doing for a criminal mastermind, Chris Longo was able to overcome the guilt-driven darkness inside of himself and become a loving fiancee to the woman, Dawn, that changed his view of the world. However, a part of the impulsive killer in Chris that he'd repressed remained deeply in the vestiges of his subconscious, and after months of remembering nothing, the details of his attempted murder of his former employer, Andrew Weinman, came rushing back to him days before his own friend and former ally, Dan Palmieri, was set to be put on trial for Andy's shooting. His mindset a menagerie of grief and determination, Chris set out to confess all to those awaiting Dan's trial in a desperate attempt to cast out the demons that were threatening to take over his life, a threat that would undoubtedly cause harm to him beloved Dawn. In the selected scene, Chris has already overcome the voices in head for long enough to cry out that he had been the one to shoot Andy, not Dan. As a ripple of surprise flows through those gathered in the courtroom, police commander Scott Davis, who has just aquired proof that Dan, in fact, did not shoot Andy, pushes his way into what would soon become an arena for the games of a madman fighting for his sanity. During the scene, we'll be shown not only the depths of Chris's love for Dawn, but the darkness inside of him, the courage of one man in the name of justice, and terrible tradegy as the result of a woman's pleads to her true love
SCENE #1:
... Scott Davis stalked into the courthouse, passing a young woman on his way in with little notice. Now was not the time for young women, he knew. Now was the time for action. Now was the time for him to save the future of a good friend and an innocent man. Reaching quickly into his pocket, Scott ran his fingers quickly over the bullet that he'd found, which was nestled tightly in his pocket. The proof that he needed to get Dan off the hook...
As he entered the courtroom, Scott was immediately taken aback by what he saw. The room was in disarray, with people everywhere, seemingly circled around one man: Chris Longo. What the hell is going on now? He wondered, but before he could do much more pondering of the circumstances, he was met with a very upset Tiff Piazza.
"What the hell's going on?" Scott asked.
"I'm not sure," she answered, her voice somewhat difficult to hear over the rumble of the crowd. "Mac and I came in to find his brother on the floor." Scott looked over, grimacing as Tiff's remarks were immediately affirmed. It appeared that Chris was battling something, something that nobody could see, as though he were in the grip of a demon, something... sinister.
Then, in an instant, it happened. Chris's body sprug back up with new life, his expression darkening with what can only be described as a look of pure malevolence. The rumble of the mob had grown to an unbearable volume, and people were closing in on the man, closing in like sharks to blood, as they looked on. Whatever had triggered these spasms was still inside of Chris.
"Get back, you fools," he growled. "Get the hell away from me. I said it, alright. Yeah, I shot Andy. I did the world a favor." As he continued his rant, he seemed indifferent to the fact that Dawn had worked her way through the crowded courtroom and was now face to face with her fiancee. Clearly shaken up, Dawn was obviously fighting back tears as she began pleading with him.
"Chris," she implored, "won't you stop this? Do you realize what you're saying? Get ahold of yourself." She moved forward, as if to calm him down, but he struck out at her, barely missing her face by a matter of inches.
"Get back," Chris spat. "All of you, get away from me unless you want to end up in a God damned coma, just like Andy. You hear me? Get back!" Behind Chris, a police officer was slowly working his way toward the raving man. In a flash of movement, however, his target was aware of his presence, and it took little for the younger, more agile Chris to easily sent the officer sprawling backward, unholstering his gun at the same time.
In his own mind, Chris's psyche was in total chaos. A part of him knew what was going on, but there was nothing that could be done. With his revelation, he hadn't freed himself of guilt. Rather, a part of him now realized with much regret, he'd embraced his act of evil and allowed for his other side, his split personality, to take control.
And now he had a gun.
"Chris, no! Please..." tears ran down Dawn's cheeks, but her cries appeared to fall upon deaf ears as Chris fired shot after shot into the air, watching gleefully as citizens of Sandy Beach City feld in mass panic.
Across the room, Scott watched as Mac, Chris's own brother, struggled, to no avail, to get through the rush of frightened people to his brother. This was a nightmare. I'm going to stop this, he resolved, rushing through with what felt like the strength of ten men. He would make a hole in this flood of human beings, and he would stop this madman.
As the innermost vestiges of Chris's mind screamed in aguish, the ferocity of his outer-self only increased. There was nothing to do now but feel. Nothing to do but experience the emotions of a darker side of his own self as he fired yet another shot, this one landing squarely in the seal of justice on the wall of the courtroom. The darkness was still growing, still unstoppable. There was nothing that Chris Longo could do to stop the repressed side of darkness that he'd unlocked today. Nothing.
In one last, desperate effort to regain control, Chris's true self-consciousness dove deeper into his own emotions, into his love for Dawn. Something had to give, and it did. In a powerful flash of mental energy, Chris felt himself blank out, only to open his eyes in time to see Scott Davis lunging for him. The police Commander landed a swift punch to Chris's stomach, followed immediately by a forearm to the side of his head. Falling backwards, his gun fired one last shot before falling out of his hand and view. The last thing that Chris saw before his entire being, both personalities, was immersed in unconsciousness, was the sight of Dawn, the love of his life, wincing in agony, almost in slow motion, as the bullet seared into her chest, her fair skin quickly spotting with a red liquid. A blood red liquid.
And then there was nothing.