| Dec 17, 2011 20:04:31 GMT -5 |
Post by mrjones on Dec 17, 2011 20:04:31 GMT -5
ALFRED AMERICA F. JONES
{Do or die, you'll never make me Because the world will never take my heart Though you try, you'll never break me We want it all, we wanna play this part}
{Do or die, you'll never make me Because the world will never take my heart Though you try, you'll never break me We want it all, we wanna play this part}
I Feel Like We're Summoning The Devil
Nickname/Alias: Al, Mr. Jones
Gender: Male
Character Type: Country
Country or Country of Origin: The United States of America
Canon or Original: Canon
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When I look into all of your stupid faces
I think how fun it will be to pound them into dust
Hair: The blonde mess atop of Alfred's head is something the man dearly treasures--or, he likes it at least. He does spend a good fifteen minutes or so fixing it in the morning.
Height and Weight: Alfred stands at exactly 5'11", being just an inch or two shorter than his brother, and, to everyone's disbelief, is only 157 lbs.
Other Distinguishing Features: The thing that stands out about Alfred most would be his over-confident smile. Even in the worst of times, when in the presence of company, Alfred will wear even the smallest of grins.
Overall Appearance: Alfred has been described by many, including himself, as a strapping and handsome young man. Though he considers himself to be radiating with ‘American Charm’, he was once described by an uncle that the lad would have been more attractive had he been born a mute. He’s tall, thin and blonde and spends far too much time fixing his hair in the mornings. Alfred considers it worth it because he figures the outcome to be a great effect on many. Just like his mouth, his concededness is overwhelming to most people.
The man always seems to wear an air of joy and pride which can also be overwhelming to some. When in the company of others, Alfred tries to never let any frustration or anger show until he’s in private. Of course, some cases cannot be helped and leaves Alfred stranded into a public fit of rage, which is never fun for anyone.
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Man up or I'll beat you with my peace prize!
✓ Food
Everyone is aware of this. I mean, he didn't get the title "the world's fatass" for nothing. Alfred highly resents the statement that he is overweight because he isn't. He just simply likes to eat--anything and everything, mind you.
✓ Sports
Baseball first and foremost, then comes American Football, basketball, soccer, needless to say the list goes on and on. He constantly denies the fact that Kiku has gotten somewhat better at him in baseball over the years.
✓ Super Heroes
Poor Alfred is obsessed with the idea of running around in colored undies, defeating campy villains, saving the world and rescuing beautiful women. Name any famous super hero and he has some sort of memorabilia stashed away.
✓ Fame, Fortune & the Hollywood Lifestyle
This is something that will never change with Alfred. He considers the American Dream to be successful, not famous, but he doesn't mind either of the options. Though he hasn't always been this way, life in the fast lane is where Alfred wants to stay.
✓ Being Right
Being right means gloating and gloating is one of Alfred's favorite pastimes. He is indeed aware that this is an awful characteristic to posses but has done little to nothing to change it.
✓ Discovering New Things
Of course, the bragging rights that come with new discoveries are always a plus, but Alfred enjoys finding out new things that can benefit not only himself but the world. It gives him a sense of accomplishment.
✓ Inventing
It's not a big personal hobby of his but he enjoys it all the same. New and crazy ideas flow through Alfred nonstop and any of those ideas for improvement he can make reality is just another plus.
✓ Arthur, Matt & All of the States
Though it may not be obvious, family is very important to Alfred; it's one of the things that gets him through the day. The States, aside from New York and Massachusetts, are not what he considers his direct family but he loves them just the same.
✓ Liberty & Justice for All
It's the foundation that the entire nation was built upon. Alfred will go through great lengths to achieve this goal. Some times he succeeds, some times he fails and sometimes he ends up creating world controversy.
✓ Guns
After spending many years perfecting the art of gun slinging and sharp shooting, it was only inevitable that guns would become Alfred's choice weapon
✓ Music
Considering himself to be a decent guitar player, Alfred has helped shape the face of the music world. His tastes in music comes and goes--though usually his preferred music is that which brings him a sense of nostalgia.
Dislikes:
✗ Being Underestimated
Though he is the youngest of any world powers that have ever been, Alfred knows he is capable of doing far more than people expect him to. He will do anything to prove you wrong and to show his strength.
✗ Giving Speeches
It takes a moment of tragedy or a sudden burst of inspiration for Alfred to give a decent speech. He has often found himself being forced to give speeches anyway and never seems to enjoy public speaking--unless is a congratulations speech of course.
✗ Admitting He's Wrong
His pride takes up half of the nation and his ego fills into whatever space is left over. Apologizing, confessing and living up to consequences is Alfred's least favorite thing to do.
✗ Surrendering
Alfred of course never enjoys having to surrender and will do whatever he can to prevent it, if at all possible.
✗ Losing a Fight
It is not often that Alfred actually loses a fight and when he does, it is not a pretty site. Each loss effects him differently according to the situation but, either way, he is not pleased.
✗ Dieting
The man loves his food! Often times he can be pressured into a diet by one person or another but it never lasts very long.
✗
Well yeah...
Strengths:
✓ His Strength
Alfred has been blessed with the ability to possess super human strength. Alfred often times forgets his ability and considers lifting cars to be nothing.
✓ Strong Will
Whether you interpret it as stubbornness or not, Alfred is about as strong willed as they come.
✓ Spirit
Alfred's spirit is not something that is easily broken and good luck to you if that's what you're after.
✓ "American Charm"
Cheesy pickup lines and inappropriate comments, more often than not, gets Alfred a slap in the face. Still, he considers his personal charm to be one of his better features.
✓ The Power to Give People Hope
Family and hope are what keeps Alfred going with life gets rough. Through his own personal problems he has found the ability to reassure people that they can overcome anything.
✓ Marksmanship
Of course, his skills have somewhat faded from what they used to be but Alfred is a dead-on shooter.
✓ Personality
Some would disagree and say that Alfred's personality is the worst part of him but he believes that all of his spunk and charisma is one of the best things about him.
Weaknesses:
✗ His Pride
He's not one to say he's sorry or to back down, or to even accept blunt charity for that matter, because his pride is his greatest possession.
✗ Absent Minded
Alfred constantly forgets things that are important, mainly because he has lost interest in them and found interest in something new instead.
✗
Ahem, yeah... moving on
✗ Personal Attachments
It's not so much that Alfred trusts to easily, it's that he gets too emotionally attached to those close to him (some of the presidents, for example) and doesn't know how to deal with the process of betrayal or death when it comes to those people.
✗ Short Attention Span
Everyone knows that can't sit still for five minutes and he sure as hell can't stay focused on anything for too long unless is some sort of extreme crisis.
✗ Deep-Fried Foods
Obviously
✗ The Second Side of Him
There is a vicious, vengeful side of Alfred that has shown itself throughout history and became very well known in the 20th century.
Fears:
[-] Dictatorships
[-] Being Alone
[-] Ghosts
[-] Losing World Power
Secrets:
[-] His middle name is really Fitzgerald but he won't tell anyone that because he thinks it's stupid.
[-] He sometimes completely ignores his conscience to achieve his goals.
[-] Alfred usually has extreme guilt for his actions.
Any Quirks/Habits:
[-] He breaks out into a Southern accent when he's drunk.
[-] Smiles too often.
[-] Enjoys being inappropriate.
Overall Personality: America is a country with many mistakes on record, and some of those mistakes are fairly big. Alfred likes to cover up his mistakes by acting ignorant and as if he has no clue what people are talking about even though on most occasions he's fully aware of what he's doing. Alfred seriously lacks the ability to think things through or to even think before acting or speaking. This usually leads him into a bunch of shit that other people end up getting pulled into and all-in-all, he just really doesn't want to live up to the consequences. Along with that, Alfred is very nosy and loves to get into people’s business whether it be personal or foreign affairs. This has ultimately resulted in few friends over the years. People know that Alfred is a guy that you can count on to get you out of a mess though most see his intentions of helping others as just being plain nosy and meddling. Though that is usually true, Alfred is very into the thought of helping people with problems that aren't his. This is usually just a way for him to show off.
Almost everyone considers Alfred to be nothing but an idiotic little kid with no common sense. Though, he is lacking in the common sense area, he's not actually as dumb as people make him out to be. Again, his dullness is mainly an act he has developed for weaseling his way out of his own problems without getting too scared up. In fact, Alfred has been the barer of many great ideas that have impacted the world positively. Alfred always finds himself living by the question "What would the founding fathers do?" and answering this question has led him to victory in many cases. Alfred is also rather old fashioned and hangs onto all the memorabilia from past decades and fills his garage with them. Though Alfred lives for the future and is very into new trends, he seems to prefer old over new in most cases. For instance, he'd go swing dancing any day of the week and would take a Frank Sinatra or Elvis record over a new age CD any day.
Besides that, Alfred is a very proud and fun-loving person who is always looking for excitement. Many people are fascinated by him while others are purely disgusted. He's very opinionated and is not afraid to speak his mind (or say the wrong thing) no matter the situation. He's also not afraid to jump in and take command of things; he likes to declare himself the hero. He also believes that you can get anywhere by driving through the continental US, that's why he only has one, a US, map.
Alfred has a rather unhealthy obsession with superheroes. He claims to have every superhero-based comic book ever written and this happens to be true. Alfred also claims that he is the inspiration for Indiana Jones, the main character of a movie series by the same name. Alongside this obsession for superheroes (which he often considers himself to be one) he also strongly believes in justice and freedom for all, having set that as the very foundation on which he built his entire nation on. However, this desire for freedom for all has created very tense circumstances and has let him create rather unnecessary problems... yes I'm talking about the Vietnam War.
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I'm the hero!
Centuries ago, Alfred’s life was simple. He lived in the forests and plains and mountains alongside his brother and his mother and troubles were scarce. But, as Alfred soon learned in his later years, nothing can ever remain simple and troubles are always ahead of you. Alfred hardly recalls his mother, seeing as he was so young and she disappeared shortly after Alfred came into the care of another, but from what he remembers, he remembers her fondly. Though Alfred loved his mother dearly, he always felt as if he terribly betrayed her, which he did by pushing her and her people away. Alfred couldn’t exactly tell you the year, or even how old he was, when they showed up. The New World, that’s what the settlers called it; but it was no new world to Alfred. It was also at this time that Alfred began to discover other small children about his home that all claimed to have lived there for years with various tribes native to that region. Years later, these children would become known worldwide as Alfred’s small band of companions: the United States. Though the exactness of the time and place when the first settlers arrived was fuzzy, Alfred could tell you all everything about when he stepped into the picture. It was a bright summer’s day in August when Alfred met Arthur for the first time. He was a small, naive child at the time, but Alfred was more than eager to welcome Arthur into his life. The reason being, he simply did not know any better.
Arthur was almost indescribable in Alfred's eyes. He dreamed of being like him one day and, just like any of Arthur's other colonies, he only longed for his approval. Arthur tended to come and go through Alfred's childhood and each time he would return, Alfred continued to grow and grow until he was finally bigger than his makeshift father figure. It also came to Arthur’s attention that he was slowly beginning to match him in strength. Alfred never took note of such things because he was far too excited to see Arthur.
As Alfred grew older, things began to change; and not for the better. Like any adolescent male, Alfred began to educate himself in the ways of rebellion and Arthur's overbearing ways weren't helping. It didn't take him long to realize what he wanted and that was to break away from his brother—though Alfred always, in secret, labeled Arthur as his father and not his brother—and become a free nation. The Revolutionary War proved to be as much of a struggle for Alfred as it was for Arthur. It wasn’t easy fighting against the world’s strongest army with his small militia of farmers and teenagers; it also wasn’t easy for Alfred to give up on the idea of no longer having Arthur care for him. At one point, Alfred was convinced that he was going to lose war (he of course never once addressed this thought out loud.) He enlisted in assistance from both France and Prussia which proved to be a major turning point in the war. This also sparked a side of Alfred that would later prove to be the mental destruction of him. It was then he began to get ideas, ideas that most people would label as ‘unethical warfare’. A surprise attack during Christmas nearly won them the war, but also led people to question the morality of the young boy. It was then that Alfred first met his vengeful side and he quickly learned that nothing could get in its way. The Revolutionary war came with many regrets for Alfred. Sometimes Alfred would wish that there could’ve been some sort of alternative that would’ve been less traumatic for both parties but at the same time was aware that said alternative did not exist. The Revolutionary War later became not only a touchy subject for Arthur, but for Alfred as well.
Soon later came the War of 1812 which to Alfred was nothing but an embarrassment in which he wants nothing more than to erase it from his memory. After everything had finally settled down, Alfred bought the Louisiana territory from France and sent out a few people (by the names of Meriwether Lewis and William Clark) and began to explore the nation which had now more than doubled. By this time there had been serious issues with expanding the country and Native American territory. And, still being the stupid and naive child he was, Alfred carried out one of his biggest regrets: the Indian Removal Act. Alfred never intended for things to happen the way they did; he had been merely convinced by the government that this was the right thing to do and things got so out of hand, he became overwhelmed and found it too late for a solution. So, like everything else, Alfred ran from his problems and headed out into the vast unknown.
He immediately fell in love with the wonders of the Wild West. From the snowy mountains in Montana, to the wide open ranges of Texas, he loved every bit of it; so much in fact, he settled into it creating a new era of lifestyle and living, one that was almost far more dangerous than any other. In the West you either lived to kill or killed to live; a dog-eat-dog world, Alfred called it and he would give up everything he ever owned to go back to it. To this day, Alfred finds himself emotional whenever he watches Westerns. Be it the sheer nostalgia or the basic idea of ‘Natives are the enemy’ Alfred is not sure.
If you asked him, Alfred would probably say those were the best years of his life. He loved it just being him, his horse, miles of open land, and pork and beans for supper every single night. He lived this life for quite a long time. He rode with them all: Wyatt Earp, Buffalo Bill, he had even found himself with a slight fancy for Annie Oakley. Unfortunately, Alfred realized that this wonderful life of his couldn't last and that he couldn't improve his nation while he was out in the wild, chasing Mexican banditos. Almost unwillingly, Alfred hung up his chaps and traded in his Western lifestyle for the sake of improving the country. However, using the West as a distractions from his problems, Alfred failed to notice the concerning state he had landed in. He had also failed to notice that trouble was brewing amongst the states.
In all honesty, a civil war of that scale was far too much of anyone at Alfred’s age to handle. Day after day, the states were pulling him from left and right trying to get him to side with one of them. ’North or South? You have to choose Alfred! Don’t be a traitor.’ Alfred refused to personally side with anyone but he came to a strong realization at First Manassas: he was slowly fading from the world. This became clear to him after he fled the scene of the battle and found himself staring back at his reflection in a lake. However, the gaze that was returned to Alfred was not his own. This, what Alfred considered to be, inhuman and hellish figure stared back at Alfred. It appeared to be the same boy but Alfred knew very well that it wasn’t. As Alfred gasped in terror, the reflection only stared back at him, wearing a malicious smile that Alfred then became very familiar with. Once returning home, Alfred found the same reflection in all his mirrors. Afraid to live with this apparition and convinced that if he did, he would surely take him over, Alfred then smashed all the mirrors in his home. That night later became known as the 'Evening of Defiance' to Alfred. He refused to let the figment of the Confederate States of America take over. Alfred was crushed to hear that Arthur had been supporting CSA and then came to the unfortunate conclusion that, in order to save himself, he had to side with the Union. This eventually lost Alfred’s favor with the Southern States which was something he knew he could possibly never get back. Alfred also became thankful that he found himself under a great leader in hardships such as the Civil War. He found great comfort in Lincoln’s words and ideas and cherished them greatly. "A house divided cannot stand." Sometimes Alfred was positive that Lincoln was speaking for him. However, it was with the unfortunate death of Lincoln that Alfred realized that such attachment with his leaders was no good for his sanity. He of course found this to be true with the sad realization that all of his great leaders had either died in office or were assassinated.
The Reconstruction era was just as tense for Alfred as the previous years. There were still many grievances between the North and the South and the fact that all the Southern states basically had to start again from scratch on the North’s terms really didn’t help ease the blow of losing the war. Again, Alfred did not pay much mind to such things for he simply sat, locked away, in his house and had staring contests with his walls.
Time slowly marched on and a new century came through the clouds, showing much promise. Alfred had been too preoccupied with years of isolationism to even notice the news of trouble brewing in Europe. He personally wasn’t interested in getting involved and was more concerned with improving the economy and welfare of society—these eras proved to be quite rare but effective—to get involved with Europe’s problems. So, after the declaration of a World War, Alfred decided it best not to get involved since he had no reason. Unfortunately, the government was convinced otherwise and suggested that, in order to build world status, they had to enter the war and assist their allies; so, Alfred did what he said he wasn't going to do, and joined the war over seas. World War One was nothing more than an excuse to get on people’s good side and an opportunity to further develop his strength on the battlefield, as Alfred saw it. World War One soon after came to an end and the twenties went roaring by. Before the twenties could roar right through, however, an immense problem presented itself in the last year of the decade.
America was handing loans left and right to Germany to pay for the cost of World War One, not to mention the poor banking and stock buying methods of his people majorly, which eventually landed him in the worst economic state he had ever seen until finally, on October 29th—a day that would come to be known as Black Tuesday, the stock market finally crashed and plunged not only Alfred but the world into an economic depression. There was no exaggeration to the term the Great Depression; in fact, Alfred considered it a bit of an understatement. Alfred sat back and watched things fall around him before falling into a bit of a depression of his own. This was the first time Alfred had noticed how easily fits of rage could rush through him and cause him to do unspeakable things; he did not realize that this side of him would only progress throughout the century. Though the world had eventually forgiven him for the condition he put them in, though Alfred never really forgave himself. He had not realized the effect in Europe as well and was completely oblivious to the fact that this lead to the rise of dictatorships across Europe.
There were many contributions to the Second World War and Alfred did his best to not get involved this time around as well. Just like the previous war, Alfred considered the tension in Europe to be the slightest of his concerns but was faced with an inevitability with this war. It would be impossible to say that Alfred didn’t ‘have it coming to him’ when he was brought into the war. He bluntly refused to assist Kiku in his quest for conquest for islands with natural resources and eventually cut him off altogether from his own oil supply. Things only went downhill from there and eventually led to his biggest concern in all of World War Two, fighting Japanese control of the Pacific. December 7th was then declared ‘a day that would live in infamy’—as it was so perfectly put by FDR, one of Al’s favorite advisors—and Alfred had officially been dragged into the Second World War, all thanks to one of his (previously) closest friends.
The War in Europe also proved to be a challenge what with the North African Campaign, George Patton and his sheer controversial craziness which then led to the invasion of Sicily which also led up to the invasion of Normandy. All of these events seemed to be evenly matched in the Pacific, however. Just like his allies in Europe, Alfred faced the fear of invasion and conquest by the Japanese army. California became an easy target for invasion—though, thanks to his and Matt’s victory at the Battle of Attu, he prevented the Japanese conquest of the Aleutian Islands in Alaskan territory. Alfred was also faced with another problem: internal betrayal. One of his only friends had already turned on him so why wouldn’t his people do the same? So, without any reason, Alfred ordered thousands of Japanese Americans to be rounded up into small army barracks, thus plummeting him into four more decades of paranoia and immoral warfare.. During this time, Alfred started to make an acquaintance with an unusual character. Arthur had warned Alfred to not get involved with India, if only because he was so begrudged by a rough past with the woman, and this only intrigued him further.
Fighting continued on in both Europe and the Pacific as the years began to dwindle down. Guadalcanal was quite a scare but ended up from saving Australia from direct invasion of the Japanese. All the while, Alfred’s sanity was slowing slipping and his vengeful side was emerging once more happened to be another thing he would become well acquainted with for the next four decades. It was all thanks to German scientist and Holocaust survivor Albert Einstein that Alfred found a solution to the war. This solution was something that Alfred was hesitant to agree to at first, even with his ruthless counterpart standing alongside him, for the fact that this idea was possibly pushing the borderlines of principals and morality of warfare—because it was.
FDR died before than plan could be carried through—Months after the war, Alfred often times found himself crying at the man’s grave, spilling sorrows to the tombstone and telling of not only the country’s victory but the price of victory itself—and it was up to his successor Harry S. Truman to fire the Atomic Bombs on Japan, thus ending the war. Alfred to this day is unsure how the war would’ve ended and in whose favor it would’ve been in had he not carried through with this plan. Though it took him nearly a year to take over the monster that had consumed him during the war, Alfred considers dropping the Atomic Bombs to be his biggest regret.
This began to give people a fear of Alfred, which was the last thing he ever wanted, and the continued to question the mental state and morality of the boy. It had been over twenty years since Alfred had last been his real, happy self and that side of him would not return until the early eighties. The next decade, Alfred faced a new series of problems with the rise of Communism and the fear of it overtaking the world and his own country. Ivan and him had both had friendly differences beforehand but had been allies all the same but, The United State and the Soviet Union being the last two remaining world powers, a war of words, threats and terrible ideas was launched. The Cold War is not something Alfred looks back upon often for it is just another era of regrets for him. Paranoia ruled over the boy, and the other States, until Alfred could take it no more. Violent fits of rage became a normal routine for the man—one would often have to dodge flying plates while in his home, if he let you in that is. Alfred also slept—slept being a relative term since the man rarely got any sleep due to his paranoia—with a shot gun either beside his bed or on the other side of the bed and, though this had been normal for some time now, he slept with a pistol under his pillow.
At this point, Alfred was convinced that everyone was against him. Arthur called him crazy, some of the State expressed their “concern” while other knew exactly what was going on but the thing that sent him over the edge was the fact that India, the woman who he was growing a slight fancy for, had turned against him and supported Ivan during the ‘War’. The monstrous side of Alfred had once again immerged and he was more than ready to nuke anyone that proved to be a threat to the wellbeing of the union, no matter who the threat may be. The Cold War eventually slowed down and came to an end, leaving Alfred a hollow and empty shell of a person he did not recognize. And just as the Cold War began to slow down, another problem proposed itself.
The Domino Theory was not one of Alfred’s favorite topics and the more obvious the danger became, the more convinced Alfred was that he had to stop it. ‘Liberty and Justice for All!’ Alfred was convinced that if Asia fell to Communism then so would the world and this led him to the Vietnam War. In truth, most of the war is a blur to Alfred—be it the heavy doses of Marijuana and Agent Orange or the fact that he was no longer his real self was not evident. He definitely had not expected Vietnam to put up a fight like she had but was determined not to give up, even though she had an unethicalness about her that rivaled his own self. Things eventually got out of hand and Alfred had to be pulled back from this hell he had thrown himself in. It was apparent to him now that the war wasn’t in his favor and was becoming more and more so as the days past. The Homefront also struggled with the Civil Rights movement and general protests of the Vietnam War in general which finally let Alfred to the mental breakdown he had been fighting off for thirty years now. After a night of screaming and another day of merciless fighting and murdering, Alfred finally gave up.
Alfred now saw himself as this unfamiliar broken creature that could not even look back at his own reflection. The Cold War, Vietnam War and the untimely death of the great friend and advisor John F. Kennedy had sent Alfred spiraling into the dark part of a nation that, at some point or other they have to face. Half a century he battled with this second side of him.
About a decade or so later, Alfred was pulling out of his deteriorating mental state with the uneventful yet embarrassing decade of the eighties and the fall of the Soviet Union in the early nineties. At last, Alfred had reached the position of the world’s strongest power and it seemed like nothing could bring him down ever again. September 11th, 2001 was, of course, a rough patch in Alfred’s journey to return to his old self but had used the tragedy to restore the hope of the American people with the consistent idea of ‘We will persevere!’
Mr. Jones is fully aware that fame, fortune and power do not last forever; that all great empires fall at some point. Alfred refuses to let himself retain those thoughts for very long and, instead, tries to enjoy his life just the way it is. “When the going gets tough, the tough get going.”
(Major points not included for the sake of your sanity:
• The Salem Witch Trials
• The French-Indian War
• The Spanish-American War
• An extremely in-depth analysis of the Indian Removal Act
• The Industrial Revolution
• And much more~ )
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You've got it backwards! Backwards!
Hurry up and throw it! If you don't hurry up and throw it, you'll go "boom"!
(From a 1984 roleplay)
Memories: he clutched to them so tightly it hurt. In fact it did hurt; it hurt Alfred that he had to hold onto his memories this way, in such pitiful desperation. Alfred F. Jones continued to search his brain for precious things he could hold onto. Last night he had discovered that he was starting to forget what his own mother looked like; it pained him terribly to realize this and to realize how he had let her down. The last words he'd heard from her echoed in his mind. "Keep me with you," she said, "and don't let my people fade away as I have." Alfred felt the lining of his jacket slowly tightening around his throat, threatening to choke him. He knew he could never forgive himself for the terrible things he had done as an easily persuaded and ignorant child. He hated himself for letting his mother's last wishes drift to the back of his mind unnoticed; and not only that but he pushed his past away from him, far away, to the coasts and barren land that no one wanted. Throughout the years, especially these past few, he wished he could take it all back.
Alfred then began to hate himself for all the other terrible things he had done in his life and he asked himself Why? Why did you do that to those people? Thoughts of the atomic bombs rattled through his subconscious in a way that made him nauseous. He looked back upon himself and how much he had changed after Pearl Harbor. To himself, he was a monster, blinded by nothing but revenge. Alfred then laughed at himself, realizing just how sour revenge had begun to taste. We the people of the United States... he chanted in his mind. Suddenly his mind fell silent and his eyes widened with a flash of fear. "Oh god..." he muttered under his breath. We the people of the United States... That was as far as he could get, that was all he could remember. Alfred shut his eyes tightly, refusing to believe that he was loosing the only thing that gave him comfort, but he knew it was true...and he knew he'd slowly forget the rest of it. The United States... that would be the next thing to go. Alfred slowly opened his eyes and stared down at the floor. Where were his states, his family? A grim smile appeared on Alfred's lips as their faces flashed in his mind. No one expected such a small, stupid kid and his small band of what he considered to be his brothers and sisters to go so far, but they did. They showed the world that anything was possible and they continued to show the world.
His mind fell blank again as the small hint of a smile slowly began to fade away. Guilt again threatened to attack him once more, but for the first time in a while, he shoved guilt away and remained strong for a few minutes more. Slowly, more faces began to flash in his mind; random people throughout his history. The first was Babe Ruth, Alfred didn't quite understand why George's face chose to appear but he didn't question it. "Don't forget kid, heroes get remembered but legends never die." Alfred always found himself living by those great words of his. The next face to appear was Thomas Jefferson's, Alfred always felt like breaking into tears when he thought of this man, this important person from his childhood; Alfred considered it a great blessing that he still pictured him so well. He wished that more people could've had the same mentality that Jefferson did; he knew the world would've been a much better place then. Alfred wasn't prepared for what hit him next. Suddenly, his eyes hazed over as the image of a laughing, curly-haired blonde woman played like a newsreel in his head. In private, he always addressed her as Norma Jean, just as she wished everyone else would. Alfred felt his eyes burn as they began to water slightly while his mouth gaped and his bottom lip quivered. His heart always shattered when he thought of this poor woman and the great life she had and how quickly it was all taken away from her. He was proud that she always came to him for comfort, only he wished he could have given her more. Alfred always felt a sense of failure when he thought about Marilyn Monroe; he felt that he had failed to keep her happy or to keep her alive even. For a moment, the crime scene and her lifeless body flashed, just as all the familiar faces had, and vanished from his mind, leaving him with the same sickening feelings he had gotten before when he thought about the subject. He shook his head, trying to shake the tears from his eyes, and found that the image of the blonde bombshell had been shaken out as well.
Alfred let out a heavy sigh, embarrassed at the figure he'd become. None of those people were here now to fill him with legendary words of hope and optimism. He slowly began to wonder just how much longer his "American spirit" could hold him up and allow him to lift his head ever-so-slightly, proving that he could persevere through anything. But he knew it wouldn't last, he knew now that he was wrong... that he couldn't persevere through anything. Then he asked himself Just who are you now, Alfred F. Jones? Who are you without your spirit? Only, the question went unanswered.
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I Summon thee from far away lands, come forth!
You called?
Timezone: Central
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