Gravedigger sits against a chain-link fence, looking at a barking Pitbull that yanks on its chain, fighting to get at him.
“In my youth, I came across a sight like this more often than you’d think in the slums. Dogs barking and howling all night long made the siren sounds of the depravity somehow more intoxicating.
But when you were on the hunt for a meal or trying to break into a pharmacy for your next fix, these little fuckers could give you away.
Worse still, if they broke free, they’d tear the flesh off your bones without hesitation.”
He smirks at the fighting Bully.
“The first couple of times I hopped a fence, I was cocky. I charged in like a bull, noting the linked chain holding the mighty pitbull back. It held. All I had to concern myself with was the noise of breaking in and getting out before I got caught.
A few instances of that led to hubris. Successful burglaries gave me confidence and I stopped paying attention to the growling and barking dogs chained up in the yard.
Until one day, I hopped that fence and walked brazenly past a mutt that broke free and bit my ass.”
Gravedigger stands up and walks over to the dog, standing nearby.
“See, one of those links in his chain had sheared. The force he’d applied to it over a period of time had weakened it and when he saw a big, tasty treat of an intruder, he yanked on it hard enough to snap the link and break free.
I didn’t see that coming.
It took learning that lesson to understand the importance of a couple things. First, a chain is only as strong as its links. One little break, one little shear, and snap. Second, you should always be prepared for the unexpected. Because if that chain breaks, all hell breaks loose, and you’re left nursing wounds.”
He grabs the chain and looks at it, noticing that it’s unbroken with no damage.
“Whether we like it or not, Hatchet, Gemini and I are links in a chain. Any singular break in that link and all hell breaks loose. If Hatchet decides he doesn’t need us, all hell breaks loose. If Gemini can’t get her head on right, all hell breaks loose.
The only way we win Chain Reaction is if we work together. One chain. One purpose.”
Gravedigger smirks.
“Malakai, Foley and Klaus – their chain already has a break in it. Foley doesn’t want any part of it with Malakai Midnight.
Destructo Boy, Jasper Redgrave and Aurora can barely form a chain between themselves. Redgrave doesn’t want anything to do with any of them. He’s the Pitbull, roaming free in the yard.
And Doom, Nox and Mr. Sunshine are too occupied trying to craft a chain out of unrealistic possibilities to be unbreakable that they’re going to fail to come together when they need to.”
He tosses the chain down.
“Chain Reaction will be won by the strongest links in the strongest chain.
And if one links breaks, the whole chain breaks.”