“I think back to when I was just a child.”
“My family had a dog. A brown boxer named Spike.”
“Spike and I.. we were best friends.”
“We spent most of my child hood running around in the front yard and frolicking about.”
“Hours of the day were spent just wrestling around with good ole Spike.”
“But if there’s one thing you can’t buy, it’s time.”
“As the years passed, I wasn’t the only one who was getting older.”
“We went from young and spry to old and weary. Sure, we could have a good tussle but it would be over in the span of seconds, not hours.”
“I was about sixteen when I woke up that day, Spike laying at the edge of my bed like any other morning.”
“However, usually when I rolled out of bed, Spike was right beside me, stretching and moving about.”
“But not today.”
“Today was somehow different. I called his name and gave my leg a good pat.. but he still didn’t move. Instead, he looked up at me with his big, sad and helpless eyes.”
“Thinking back now, I’ve seen that look before. It was the look a man gave when he had been defeated.”
“When there was nothing left in the tank. When he had given it his all and simply couldn’t pick himself up off the ground to carry on.”
“It was then I realized that Spike had been defeated. That he couldn’t get up to serve his purpose any longer. That night, my father drug Spike up by the collar and led him out back with his shotgun in hand..”
“With a loud BANG, the family dog had been put down to rest.”
“All these years later, and the only thing that has changed is who is dragging the family dog out to pasture.”
“You see, we have this new dog. His name is Simon.”
“For the most part, Simon’s a good boy. We can send him out to tussle with the kids in the front lawn of OSW for hours, and at the end of the night he will lay to rest at the foot of the bed.”
“But for the past few weeks, when my father rolls out of bed, Simon hasn’t been able to pull himself up off the floor. When my father calls his name and pats his leg, looking for a response from the dog, Simon doesn’t make a sound. Instead, he simply looks back with lost wonder in his eye. Unable to pull himself back together to serve his purpose of keeping Corvus and Sigil at bay.”
“Every old dog meets his day, Simon. Retroshock seems to be yours.”
“Because when you can’t serve your purpose, you’re of no good use to me or my father.”
“This time, I’ll be the one to grab the family dog up by the collar and drag him out back. I’ll load my shotgun and whisper sweet nothings into a dying dog’s ear before aiming down the sights.”
“BANG!”
“The family dog will be put out of his misery.”
“Kneel before the Prince of the Underworld..”
“Be a good little boy, dog.”