SWITCHBLADE TRAVIS

PART TWELVE: BACK TO NORMAL

The next day, it was as if everyone had woken from a trance. They cried with joy as if something big happened. Travis spoke to one of them. "What happened?" They  replied. "The leader is dead! We are free!" Travis started to tear up as he realized what they meant. It meant that the world would be free of vegan based food and liberalism. No more rules on religion or life. Ranching could be a job once again. One hundred percent of salaries would not be going to one rich fat man who controlled slave work. These people had been trapped by a supposed utopia which turned out to be false. Hard work was finally a thing again, and it would be needed from everyone if they wanted to get out of this hard case of suffering. Travis went to leave Hugh's house when a letter appeared on the front porch. It was from the United States government. It read: "To Travis, you now hold ownership of Mr. Stanley's mansion. Our sincere regrets for our mistreatment of you. Best wishes, The Government." Travis could not believe it. It seemed as if the Devil went to Texas but he did not stick around. Travis told everyone to leave and take Hugh's body with them, as they shall bury him at the nearby Lone stone Cemetery. Travis scoffed and looked at his sleepy dog before speaking. "I've been around too many knives. When you have found yourself, only then shall you be able to distinguish a stage prop from a real knife. Well Charley, I guess we're good for life. Sure, I've done some things I'm not proud of, but at least I did not bite the hand the fed me." Charley looked at him before yawning and falling asleep, finally at a peaceful rest, being able to be off guard. Travis was always pursued by an apparition of death, and he defied it. When his peace finally came, all was at rest. Once you've felt one thousand pains, you feel none at all. Travis had been hurt and abandoned all his life, teaching himself how to survive. When he came crashing through the forest as society cut his roots away, he fell on another tree which caught him. That tree was Charley, his loving dog. Society used to cripple everything good Travis found, but that stopped when he found Charley. From then on, it was no longer about surviving. It was about fighting. Not fighting to survive, but to thrive. In the end, Switchblade Travis ended up thriving with Charley. He put down the knife and let life run its course, for after all, dog is a man's best friend. Travis learned one thing from his life: The outcome of the fight was never down to the luck of the draw or who the media believed would win. It was only down to how much fight you put into yourself. Surely enough, Travis had fought till the very end and the roll was called on high. The most important lesson was never spoken, only seen: Once you think you have everything under your buckle, put it on your shoulders and see how under control it really is, for life's weight might be too much to bear.