[div align=\\\"center\\\"]The Connor Tanner Chronicles[/div]
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]Edition II: A Pair of Aces[/div]
Previously on the Connor Tanner Chronicles: a mass retirement from a bottom-dwelling team and the unraveling of a massive conspiracy...
After being caught on their back foot, the head office of the National Simulation Football League came out firing.
“I’m just glad that Connor Tanner returned to the public sphere to actually retire instead of hiding from me like a little child,” head office member Avon Blocksdale told a gaggle of reporters outside his vacation home. “He spent weeks ignoring all our attempts to get in contact with him. I am on my way to meet with the rest of the head office and will have more to say after I’ve had a chance to talk to everyone and get to the bottom of this. Let me just say that reports of the league falling apart are categorically false. Let me be clear: we are better off without Tanner. Thank you.”
As he ducked into the car fellow head office member Benson Bayley, who had been vacationing with Blocksdale, was overheard saying, “I thought Connor Tanner was better than this.” To which Blocksdale reportedly replied, “I’ve always known he was a garbage person, this just confirmed it.”
A few hours later after multiple whirlwind meetings and knowing they had to take decisive action to calm the worries about the league’s health the NSFL released an official statement:
“We are not folding the team but we are assuming control of it. Geoff Biscuit is hereby relieved of his ownership role and the head office will handle the day-to-day management until we find a new owner. We’ve already had numerous groups reach out to us with interest in taking over. We will update you all periodically but the league is still fundamentally strong and growing. Any rumors to the contrary are simply untrue. Thank you.”
The NSFL’s response was an effort to calm the agitated waters but instead handed more ammunition to Poward.
“Wow, the NSFL has assumed control of the franchise! What a big surprise that is! I wonder who could possibly have seen that coming,” he started sarcastically after reading the NSFL statement on air. “This has been their plan all along. Biscuit was never an owner that they could control so they’ve been searching for a reason to force him out and here it is. What did they expect the reaction to be? Did they really expect us to thank them for taking over this maligned franchise? Yeah, they’ve done such a good job running the league what could possibly go wrong here.
You won’t believe this but I just received a text from an impeccably trustworthy source that says during the discussions over what to do with the franchise Dan Miller - that’s the head office member that just stepped down, or at least we were told he stepped down… - said, and I quote: ‘terrorism is better than Connor Tanner.’ Terrorism is better than Connor Tanner. I’m physically disgusted right now. These are the people running this league? These are the people making the decisions? Cut to commercial, I need a minute to calm down.”
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]--[/div]
As the Legion retirees spoke to the media that day and explained their reasonings, public opinion began to shift against the head office. Some began to call Tanner a scapegoat the NSFL desperately needed. These murmurs needed to be quelled.
Dan Miller dismissed that idea, “Dude encourages a mass retirement but we found a scapegoat? I just don’t see the entire team unanimously retiring. He called for the team to mass retire. HE hosted the press conference so HE orchestrated it. If 6 people talk about robbing a bank and then one of them shows up with guns and a van and tells the other 5 to get in who orchestrated it?”
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]--[/div]
“Who orchestrated it? Who orchestrated it?!”
As the end of Poward’s time slot was beginning to close in he got himself riled up for one last tirade in an effort to keep the outrage going long after he signed off.
“I’ll tell you who orchestrated it. Dan Miller did. And so did Avon Blocksdale. And Benson Bayley. And totally not Charlie Law somebody with a totally different name than that. And all of the head office. That much we know. But as I’ve sat here the last few hours reporting on this massive story one thing didn’t make any sense. Why?
Yeah, sure. The league wanted to get rid of an noncompliant owner, replace him with someone that will toe the line. Big deal. He was on the outs anyway. I mean, we’re talking about the retirement of 6 players who played for a garbage franchise that was barely able to pay its employees! Why does that require such a drastic head office response? Who cares!
Well I’ll tell you why. It’s the only explanation that neatly ties together all of the weird developments in this story. The head office is covering up a CTE scandal. Yeah. The retiring Legion players are suffering symptoms of CTE and retired before their brains turned to actual mush. The head office obviously couldn’t allow this to get out because the liability they’d be on the hook for would be insaaaane. So they covered it up. They paint Connor Tanner as the villain. The conniving antagonist hell bent on destroying the league. But that doesn’t make sense. Not to anyone capable of thinking critically. Why would he care about the health of the league after retiring? It doesn’t make any sense and yet that’s the story they’re feeding us to distract us from the CTE epidemic embroiling the league. That’s why they seized control of the team. That’s why they’re so determined to make everyone believe Tanner is the bad guy. That’s why they called Tanner worse than a terrorist.
But that’s not all.
Remembahh - wow this feels so long ago but it was just a couple hours - remember Wallace Stone announcing that he wasn’t retiring? Why was he on the list then? Why did Tanner think he was retiring? Because he was going to, he has crippling CTE too and was trying to make a graceful exit from the game he gave so much to but the head office knew that couldn’t happen. And that’s why - I just learned this - that’s why the head office, as de facto owner of the franchise, is paying for Stone to change positions! He got beat up behind that Las Vegas offensive line, suffered more than a few concussions and now they’re paying him off and promising that he won’t have to suffer that fate any longer. Unbelievable. Did they really expect nobody to put this together? Come on, they couldn’t be more obvious about this if they were doing it below a giant flashing neon sign. And they think they’ll get away with it because they think nobody cares. Well guess what. I care and I’m pretty sure all of you out there care. We want a healthy league and former players who can be graceful ambassadors of the game rather than hidden away in nursing homes by 50 because they can’t hold a cup anymore.”
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]--[/div]
Watching all of this drama, all of this toxic negativity unfold was Blackford Oakes, the player that Connor Tanner had traded specifically to acquire, the man that Tanner was grooming to be his right-hand man. He shut the television off. He couldn’t handle any more of this charade. He already shut his phone down because it wouldn’t stop ringing and he knew it was only a matter of time before the press figured out he was at his vacation home in Telluride.
He stopped pacing and rubbed his face. This was not how he envisioned the offseason going. He was just named Defensive Rookie of the Year and the Legion had assembled a talented young core that would give them a good chance to compete in the near future. He was excited to compete side by side with his teammates, some of whom just announced their retirement. Suddenly his vision of the next few seasons was crumbling around him.
Staring out his window into the snow covered landscape, Oakes thought back to the last conversation he had with Tanner. It was contentious and got pretty heated but he never expected something like this.
It started earlier in the week when he was back in Las Vegas. As he was tying up all the loose ends in preparation for his vacation he received a mysterious text: “I need to speak with you, your ticket is waiting for you at the airport. When you arrive I’ll pick you up. -CT”
Oakes knew many people with those initials but was hopeful it was Tanner, he hadn’t heard from his friend in weeks. Not entirely sure what he was getting himself into, he picked up the tickets and headed for his gate - he was Philadelphia-bound.
“Philadelphia?” he thought. “Gross. Couldn’t he have picked a less objectionable city?”
Nonetheless, he persisted. Debarking the plane a few hours later, Oakes loitered around baggage claim studying every face that passed by looking for Tanner. It was a long wait when he was tapped on the shoulder.
“Come with me.”
Oakes turned around but the figure was already fighting through the crowd toward a waiting vehicle. The man was too short and too slender to be Tanner but Oakes followed - perhaps more subterfuge?
“What on Earth is going on?” Oakes wondered as he slid into the large SUV. Its tinted windows blocked out almost all of the little light that is allowed to shine in Philadelphia and suddenly he was in a scene straight out of a mob movie.
“Thank you for joining us,” the man said as he gestured to another figure sitting in the back as he lowered the scarf he had wrapped tightly around his face.
Oakes didn’t recognize either of the men and was starting to panic.
“Don’t worry, you’re not in any danger. Much the opposite in fact,” he continued with a small laugh. “We work for- well I can’t tell you much but we’ve learned that you are in grave danger. I know you have no reason to trust me but when you arrive at your vacation home there will be a man there waiting. Your friend Connor. But he’s not your friend, not anymore. He is going to try everything in his power to convince you to retire - you cannot agree to this. Here, take this ring and be sure you’re wearing it before you face him.”
Oakes was taken aback, “I- Wha- Huh?”
“I know it’s a lot to take in. You have no reason to trust us but you must. You’ll see we’re right when you get to your chalet. And you must be wearing the ring.”
“Bu- But.. why?”
The two mysterious men exchanged glances, the man in the back seemed to give the one talking a silent approval.
“Connor Tanner has gotten himself caught up in a massive conspiracy by joining the NSFL management team. They’ve entrusted him with a gold chain, a necklace he now wears around his neck - you’ve never seen him wear jewelry before, have you?”
“Err. No… no I don’t think so. I didn’t really pay attention.”
“This necklace gives him heightened persuasional powers. He is still learning how to wield its power effectively but you should proceed with the assumption that anything he tells anyone to do will be obeyed to the letter and without regard for one’s personal ambitions, desires, or even safety. That ring will protect you from his power.”
Oakes sank back into his chair. It was indeed a lot to take in.
“But… So why would he want me to retire? That doesn’t make any sense. We had big plans for the future of the Legion…”
“We aren’t entirely certain of his motivation but our best investigators are looking into it. All we know is that convincing you to retire is critical to the head office’s plan and we cannot afford for that to happen. The man you knew as Connor Tanner is dead and has been replaced by a mere husk of his former self, a husk that is doing the bidding of some of the most dastardly people in the world.”
“Look. None of this makes any sense. You can’t seriously expect me to trust you over one of my best friends, you’re just some creepy dudes handing out trinkets.”
For the first time Oakes saw the man in the back move. He leaned forward, bringing his old, sagging face a few inches from Oakes’ before speaking.
“Look here you whiny little shit, we honestly have way more important things to do than hold your hand as you slowly come to the realization that the league you love, the league you grew up idolizing is fucked up - more than fucked up actually. It’s a black hole of greed leaving behind nothing but misery and broken bodies. I’m sure this is very uncomfortable for you but we really don’t have time to sit here and let you talk out your feelings. The time for talking is over, it’s time to act. Either do what we’ve told you or don’t. We’re way smarter and more organized than you so we’ll figure out something either way but your complete lack of any gratitude toward us for doing nothing short of saving your measly, inconsequential life is grating on me.”
Oakes could do nothing in response but sit with jaw agape.
“Quit gawking and get the fuck out of my car,” the man punctuated as he leaned back and resumed his former statuesque pose.
Still not quite sure what just happened he turned back to the man he had been conversing with hoping for answers but receiving nothing more than a barely-interested shrug as he took his phone out and began earnestly tapping on it.
Oakes slowly climbed out and the mysterious men disappeared into the flow of traffic. He looked down into his hand where he was rolling the ring around on his palm. It was a gaudy ring, something he’d expect a bored, upper-middle class trophy wife to wear to a charity gala or something. It was made of gold with a webbed design flanking either side of the bezel, which had some sort of engraving involving symbols he didn’t recognize. Not exactly something he’d like to be spotted wearing but if what the men said was true…
It couldn’t be, though; their story made no sense. They said Connor was working for the head office but he had just watched the head office thoroughly rip Connor apart - they definitely weren’t working together.
On the other hand, what purpose would they have to lie to him and give him this weird ring? There was no upside that he could see. And what’s the worst thing that could happen if he did what they said? All they wanted him to do was wear the ring and not retire. There’s not a lot of downside there.
As he was trying to puzzle through by far the weirdest day of his life he felt his phone buzz and he pulled it out to check his text.
“Go catch your plane you dope, Tanner is expecting you and we don’t want him to know we’re on to him. Don’t be late.”
Oakes quickly headed back inside, completely unaware how much crazier this day would get.
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]Edition II: A Pair of Aces[/div]
Code:
2576 wordsPreviously on the Connor Tanner Chronicles: a mass retirement from a bottom-dwelling team and the unraveling of a massive conspiracy...
After being caught on their back foot, the head office of the National Simulation Football League came out firing.
“I’m just glad that Connor Tanner returned to the public sphere to actually retire instead of hiding from me like a little child,” head office member Avon Blocksdale told a gaggle of reporters outside his vacation home. “He spent weeks ignoring all our attempts to get in contact with him. I am on my way to meet with the rest of the head office and will have more to say after I’ve had a chance to talk to everyone and get to the bottom of this. Let me just say that reports of the league falling apart are categorically false. Let me be clear: we are better off without Tanner. Thank you.”
As he ducked into the car fellow head office member Benson Bayley, who had been vacationing with Blocksdale, was overheard saying, “I thought Connor Tanner was better than this.” To which Blocksdale reportedly replied, “I’ve always known he was a garbage person, this just confirmed it.”
A few hours later after multiple whirlwind meetings and knowing they had to take decisive action to calm the worries about the league’s health the NSFL released an official statement:
“We are not folding the team but we are assuming control of it. Geoff Biscuit is hereby relieved of his ownership role and the head office will handle the day-to-day management until we find a new owner. We’ve already had numerous groups reach out to us with interest in taking over. We will update you all periodically but the league is still fundamentally strong and growing. Any rumors to the contrary are simply untrue. Thank you.”
The NSFL’s response was an effort to calm the agitated waters but instead handed more ammunition to Poward.
“Wow, the NSFL has assumed control of the franchise! What a big surprise that is! I wonder who could possibly have seen that coming,” he started sarcastically after reading the NSFL statement on air. “This has been their plan all along. Biscuit was never an owner that they could control so they’ve been searching for a reason to force him out and here it is. What did they expect the reaction to be? Did they really expect us to thank them for taking over this maligned franchise? Yeah, they’ve done such a good job running the league what could possibly go wrong here.
You won’t believe this but I just received a text from an impeccably trustworthy source that says during the discussions over what to do with the franchise Dan Miller - that’s the head office member that just stepped down, or at least we were told he stepped down… - said, and I quote: ‘terrorism is better than Connor Tanner.’ Terrorism is better than Connor Tanner. I’m physically disgusted right now. These are the people running this league? These are the people making the decisions? Cut to commercial, I need a minute to calm down.”
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]--[/div]
As the Legion retirees spoke to the media that day and explained their reasonings, public opinion began to shift against the head office. Some began to call Tanner a scapegoat the NSFL desperately needed. These murmurs needed to be quelled.
Dan Miller dismissed that idea, “Dude encourages a mass retirement but we found a scapegoat? I just don’t see the entire team unanimously retiring. He called for the team to mass retire. HE hosted the press conference so HE orchestrated it. If 6 people talk about robbing a bank and then one of them shows up with guns and a van and tells the other 5 to get in who orchestrated it?”
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]--[/div]
“Who orchestrated it? Who orchestrated it?!”
As the end of Poward’s time slot was beginning to close in he got himself riled up for one last tirade in an effort to keep the outrage going long after he signed off.
“I’ll tell you who orchestrated it. Dan Miller did. And so did Avon Blocksdale. And Benson Bayley. And totally not Charlie Law somebody with a totally different name than that. And all of the head office. That much we know. But as I’ve sat here the last few hours reporting on this massive story one thing didn’t make any sense. Why?
Yeah, sure. The league wanted to get rid of an noncompliant owner, replace him with someone that will toe the line. Big deal. He was on the outs anyway. I mean, we’re talking about the retirement of 6 players who played for a garbage franchise that was barely able to pay its employees! Why does that require such a drastic head office response? Who cares!
Well I’ll tell you why. It’s the only explanation that neatly ties together all of the weird developments in this story. The head office is covering up a CTE scandal. Yeah. The retiring Legion players are suffering symptoms of CTE and retired before their brains turned to actual mush. The head office obviously couldn’t allow this to get out because the liability they’d be on the hook for would be insaaaane. So they covered it up. They paint Connor Tanner as the villain. The conniving antagonist hell bent on destroying the league. But that doesn’t make sense. Not to anyone capable of thinking critically. Why would he care about the health of the league after retiring? It doesn’t make any sense and yet that’s the story they’re feeding us to distract us from the CTE epidemic embroiling the league. That’s why they seized control of the team. That’s why they’re so determined to make everyone believe Tanner is the bad guy. That’s why they called Tanner worse than a terrorist.
But that’s not all.
Remembahh - wow this feels so long ago but it was just a couple hours - remember Wallace Stone announcing that he wasn’t retiring? Why was he on the list then? Why did Tanner think he was retiring? Because he was going to, he has crippling CTE too and was trying to make a graceful exit from the game he gave so much to but the head office knew that couldn’t happen. And that’s why - I just learned this - that’s why the head office, as de facto owner of the franchise, is paying for Stone to change positions! He got beat up behind that Las Vegas offensive line, suffered more than a few concussions and now they’re paying him off and promising that he won’t have to suffer that fate any longer. Unbelievable. Did they really expect nobody to put this together? Come on, they couldn’t be more obvious about this if they were doing it below a giant flashing neon sign. And they think they’ll get away with it because they think nobody cares. Well guess what. I care and I’m pretty sure all of you out there care. We want a healthy league and former players who can be graceful ambassadors of the game rather than hidden away in nursing homes by 50 because they can’t hold a cup anymore.”
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]--[/div]
Watching all of this drama, all of this toxic negativity unfold was Blackford Oakes, the player that Connor Tanner had traded specifically to acquire, the man that Tanner was grooming to be his right-hand man. He shut the television off. He couldn’t handle any more of this charade. He already shut his phone down because it wouldn’t stop ringing and he knew it was only a matter of time before the press figured out he was at his vacation home in Telluride.
He stopped pacing and rubbed his face. This was not how he envisioned the offseason going. He was just named Defensive Rookie of the Year and the Legion had assembled a talented young core that would give them a good chance to compete in the near future. He was excited to compete side by side with his teammates, some of whom just announced their retirement. Suddenly his vision of the next few seasons was crumbling around him.
Staring out his window into the snow covered landscape, Oakes thought back to the last conversation he had with Tanner. It was contentious and got pretty heated but he never expected something like this.
It started earlier in the week when he was back in Las Vegas. As he was tying up all the loose ends in preparation for his vacation he received a mysterious text: “I need to speak with you, your ticket is waiting for you at the airport. When you arrive I’ll pick you up. -CT”
Oakes knew many people with those initials but was hopeful it was Tanner, he hadn’t heard from his friend in weeks. Not entirely sure what he was getting himself into, he picked up the tickets and headed for his gate - he was Philadelphia-bound.
“Philadelphia?” he thought. “Gross. Couldn’t he have picked a less objectionable city?”
Nonetheless, he persisted. Debarking the plane a few hours later, Oakes loitered around baggage claim studying every face that passed by looking for Tanner. It was a long wait when he was tapped on the shoulder.
“Come with me.”
Oakes turned around but the figure was already fighting through the crowd toward a waiting vehicle. The man was too short and too slender to be Tanner but Oakes followed - perhaps more subterfuge?
“What on Earth is going on?” Oakes wondered as he slid into the large SUV. Its tinted windows blocked out almost all of the little light that is allowed to shine in Philadelphia and suddenly he was in a scene straight out of a mob movie.
“Thank you for joining us,” the man said as he gestured to another figure sitting in the back as he lowered the scarf he had wrapped tightly around his face.
Oakes didn’t recognize either of the men and was starting to panic.
“Don’t worry, you’re not in any danger. Much the opposite in fact,” he continued with a small laugh. “We work for- well I can’t tell you much but we’ve learned that you are in grave danger. I know you have no reason to trust me but when you arrive at your vacation home there will be a man there waiting. Your friend Connor. But he’s not your friend, not anymore. He is going to try everything in his power to convince you to retire - you cannot agree to this. Here, take this ring and be sure you’re wearing it before you face him.”
Oakes was taken aback, “I- Wha- Huh?”
“I know it’s a lot to take in. You have no reason to trust us but you must. You’ll see we’re right when you get to your chalet. And you must be wearing the ring.”
“Bu- But.. why?”
The two mysterious men exchanged glances, the man in the back seemed to give the one talking a silent approval.
“Connor Tanner has gotten himself caught up in a massive conspiracy by joining the NSFL management team. They’ve entrusted him with a gold chain, a necklace he now wears around his neck - you’ve never seen him wear jewelry before, have you?”
“Err. No… no I don’t think so. I didn’t really pay attention.”
“This necklace gives him heightened persuasional powers. He is still learning how to wield its power effectively but you should proceed with the assumption that anything he tells anyone to do will be obeyed to the letter and without regard for one’s personal ambitions, desires, or even safety. That ring will protect you from his power.”
Oakes sank back into his chair. It was indeed a lot to take in.
“But… So why would he want me to retire? That doesn’t make any sense. We had big plans for the future of the Legion…”
“We aren’t entirely certain of his motivation but our best investigators are looking into it. All we know is that convincing you to retire is critical to the head office’s plan and we cannot afford for that to happen. The man you knew as Connor Tanner is dead and has been replaced by a mere husk of his former self, a husk that is doing the bidding of some of the most dastardly people in the world.”
“Look. None of this makes any sense. You can’t seriously expect me to trust you over one of my best friends, you’re just some creepy dudes handing out trinkets.”
For the first time Oakes saw the man in the back move. He leaned forward, bringing his old, sagging face a few inches from Oakes’ before speaking.
“Look here you whiny little shit, we honestly have way more important things to do than hold your hand as you slowly come to the realization that the league you love, the league you grew up idolizing is fucked up - more than fucked up actually. It’s a black hole of greed leaving behind nothing but misery and broken bodies. I’m sure this is very uncomfortable for you but we really don’t have time to sit here and let you talk out your feelings. The time for talking is over, it’s time to act. Either do what we’ve told you or don’t. We’re way smarter and more organized than you so we’ll figure out something either way but your complete lack of any gratitude toward us for doing nothing short of saving your measly, inconsequential life is grating on me.”
Oakes could do nothing in response but sit with jaw agape.
“Quit gawking and get the fuck out of my car,” the man punctuated as he leaned back and resumed his former statuesque pose.
Still not quite sure what just happened he turned back to the man he had been conversing with hoping for answers but receiving nothing more than a barely-interested shrug as he took his phone out and began earnestly tapping on it.
Oakes slowly climbed out and the mysterious men disappeared into the flow of traffic. He looked down into his hand where he was rolling the ring around on his palm. It was a gaudy ring, something he’d expect a bored, upper-middle class trophy wife to wear to a charity gala or something. It was made of gold with a webbed design flanking either side of the bezel, which had some sort of engraving involving symbols he didn’t recognize. Not exactly something he’d like to be spotted wearing but if what the men said was true…
It couldn’t be, though; their story made no sense. They said Connor was working for the head office but he had just watched the head office thoroughly rip Connor apart - they definitely weren’t working together.
On the other hand, what purpose would they have to lie to him and give him this weird ring? There was no upside that he could see. And what’s the worst thing that could happen if he did what they said? All they wanted him to do was wear the ring and not retire. There’s not a lot of downside there.
As he was trying to puzzle through by far the weirdest day of his life he felt his phone buzz and he pulled it out to check his text.
“Go catch your plane you dope, Tanner is expecting you and we don’t want him to know we’re on to him. Don’t be late.”
Oakes quickly headed back inside, completely unaware how much crazier this day would get.
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Jurisprudence Jones, OL ![[Image: cYhSwFY.png]](https://i.imgur.com/cYhSwFY.png)
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