a blazing start... (Oh-limpics Part 1)

[Production Note: Please pretend we'd managed to get this post up 4 days ago like we'd planned. With the creative team busy helping Traum have his current Vancouver adventures at the real events, we haven't had a lot of time for blogging. So please enjoy, and stay tuned for upcoming live posts that will be up with current events at the 2010 games!]

my special talent agent peter bond, had called me up and given me an HOUR to get to the airport in calgary. doing so, i suddenly found myself in vancouver again... it has been a long time since i'd last been here!

why i'm here, i can't say. peter insisted it was an emergancy, hence the last minute flight over here. i was worried something really bad had happened to lillian the albertosaur, who i'd entrusted peter to look after.

what had me the most confused was last i'd heard from both peter and lillian they'd been in new york. what were they do back in canada, and on the opposite side of the country?

peter had left me some pretty speific instructions on where and when to met him. i had to race straight there from the airport upon landing to make it in time mind you. good thing i didn't have any luggage (either to bring here or pack in calgary! i won't have been able to bring in either case!!!).

"glad you could make it!" peter greeted me as i walked up to him.

"i didn't have much choice did i," i replied. for an emergancy peter was seeming pretty happy... "what happened to lillian?"

peter looked confused for a moment. "the emergancy you brought me here for," i tried to prompt him.

"oh no, lillian's fine. in fact she's better then fine. they love her at the japan house!" peter proudly declared. i wasn't following a thing he said. "though speaking of that emergancy, thanks for reminding me!"

he beckoned me over to a red carpet. "welcome to your welcoming here at vancouver traum baby!"

i didn't get it. i told peter so. "what's not to get?" he thought i was joking.

"i'm not famous," i answered. "why would they put out a red carpet for me?"

this seemed to offend peter to an extent. "well to start off with, you'll never be famous with that attitude. think you're a super star traum, and you will be..." he zoned out for a moment looking about, as though he was worried people would be watching us. "as for why the red carpet would be out for you. well they may not have technically put it out for you," he side noted out loud. "but one can always come up with a reason after the fact to make it so it should have been!"

with that peter snuck off... snuck off on an empty red carpet mind you. which i found a bit weird. at least all the people who'd been checking it out (whoever had been on it) earlier had all left the carpet, and so they didn't see how silly peter looked sneaking on a red carpet. there wasn't a person around us, everyone was lined up on the sidewalk looking for something that must have been coming down the road.

suddenly peter reappeared, trying to hide a really big white stick (thingy?).

"what's that?" i wondered.

"a torch," peter informed me. though i didn't quite follow him. was it a torch torch like those sticks people lite on fire in the olden days? or was it a flashlight and just called a torch (like in new zealand) to confuse me?

"what's it for?" i tried to find out.

instead of answering, peter shoved the wand stick thing into my arms. "here take this!" i instinctively grabbed it so i didn't drop it and scuff its pretty white polish.

flciking a futuristic switch on the torch, he caused it to suddenly burst into flames! i nearly dropped it out of surprise.

"there we go," peter said statisfied. "time to make history..." he suddenly shooved me towards the road. "run traumador! run along the red carpet as fast as those little t-rex legs will take you!"

not sure what to do, other than follow peter's instructions, i took off down the carpet. i'd only run a few seconds when i suddenly hit the wall of people lining the sidewalk. the red carpet ended on the road, and i needed to get through to get there.

"uh excuse me," i asked politely of the many backs that were turned to me. "excuse me, please! this stick is getting kind of hot!"

one of the dudes in line turned to me looking annoyed. yet his face changed to absolute delight when he saw the white wand i was holding. "the torch is back here everyone!" he screamed, causing everyone to turn around. upon seeing me the crowd all broke out into massive cheering, and they all parted like one of those magic doors at the mall!

with them out of the way i jogged out onto the road. okay peter, mission accomplished. the whole mob of people lining the street was still chanting and cheering, but i couldn't tell what i was supposed to do.

as if that were bad enough, suddenly a police car came up behind me and flashed it lights at me. oh man, i was in the middle of the road... i was breaking the law! they were here to arrest me i realized!!!

hoping for mercy, i held up my hands along with the torch above my head. nothing happened for a minute. till finally the police officer stuck his head out he window. "what are you doing?"
i blinked blankely back. "yes very good you found it! i can't believe you lost the torch in the first place! we're late now. getting running."

"where?" i had to ask.

"that way," the police officer pointed the way he was driving irritatedly. i turned around to find i was facing an ocean of humans. as far as i could see the road ahead of me, were people lining the sidewalk. all looking my way. holy smokes!

suddenly the siren of the police car behind me blared to remind me to run. so i followed orders again and started down the road. as i went everyone within closeish range of me began chanting, calling, and cheering. it really was quite empowering. i felt really cool right then.

peter meanwhile was doing his best to keep up with me running and fighting his way through the crowd. the whole time estatic at what i was doing... not that i got what it was i was doing, or why peter would be happy with it?

after a few blocks of the amazing crowd response an obstacle came into view. a bunch of trucks and buses all parked up ahead on the road. they were mostly blocking my route. i wasn't sure what to do and slowed to a jog.

my slowing down allowed peter to properly catch up to me. through the noise of the crowd he yelled to me. "lite the other torch." the crowd had grown my excited as i got closure to the jam of vehicles, and they droaned out the rest of peter's instructions.

torch? what other torch? then as i closed on one of the buses i thought i saw the solution to my current problem. on the side of the bus was a painted man holding a proper torch (i saw proper, as it was one of those old fashion stick kinds you see in the movies called a torch... unlike the futuristic wand i currently held).

this must have been the other torch peter had mentioned. so i held my torch up to the side of the bus...


next thing you knew the whole side lite up in flames. brilliantly bringing the paintings torch to life! i can totally see why peter thought that would be awesome.

the crowd didn't think so though. suddenly their loving cheers turned to boos or angry yelling. several of them ran out, and tried to put out the flames with their jackets.

peter cringed. "oh boy!" he said nervously. "this is not good at all!"

during the chaos my mistorching had caused, a bunch of people were running down the street after me, and we now closing due to my stopping.

one was a dude in a white jump suit who when he spotted me from a block away yelled. "there's the guy who stole the torch!"

what? how dare he accuse of that! i hadn't stolen anything here in vancouver. if he thought he was going get me in trouble for... oh right. peter!

as he got up to me the white suit man snatched the flaming wand from me. "how dare you run my leg of the relay!" with that he ran off the way i'd just been going...

another guy in a red jacket that said security on it leaned towards me. "if it weren't against the spirit of the olympics, i'd report you to the police, man. that was so low, stealing the torch!" with that he wandered off, leaving me not sure if i should feel bad or guilty about the whole thing... whatever it was?!?

as the security guy stormed off, peter snuck up to me. "phew, that was a close call," he said relieved. "that could have turned out really disasterous."

"if only you made it half a block more though," he mournfully stated. "we would have made all the 6 o'clock news with that stunt. and after all that trouble i'd gone to, too steal that torch!"

i just looked at him scorningly. funny how it was me who was getting in trouble so far for this whole "stunt" of his. i didn't even know why it could have been disasterous! "peter what's going on?"

"its the olympic relay here in town today," peter stated rather excitedly. "that means all the fun and games start now!"

"the OH-limp-picture what?" i demanded.

peter just stared at me for a moment in disbelief. "have you watched the news even just once in the last little while?" i blinked. "oh, man. traumador... welcome to the winter olympic games."

"okay," i said trying to absorb that. "what does any of this have to do with the emergancy you phoned me about?"

"what does it have to do with the emergancy?" peter parroted my question mockingly. "traumador, the olympics were the emergancy i was calling about! they are only the biggest event in the country this year. if you're not here, we can't use them to make both you and lillian super famous!"

as if agreeing with what peter said, the crowd just down the street what way crazier then they had before.

the white jump suit man had run up to another guy who was like an exact copy of himself right down to the same wand stick. the two white suited clones touched their torches together, transfering the flame of mine old torch to the new guy's. with that the new guy started running in the same direction i'd been going, and the crowd's happy response followed him...

"oh see," peter said frustratedly, as though i was following his logic. "had that been you, we would have made the top story across the country. maybe even the world!"

so peter had hauled me all the way to vancouver for these OH-lympics to try and help my career... i could see the emergancy in that. at least from his point of view. it is what i'd hired him for, in this very city, 3 years ago!

i suddenly had multiple chills of excitement. peter had implied lillian was in town with him... meaning i had every chance of seeing the girl of my dreams again! more to the point if i could pull off what bond had just mentioned, i could save her career and make her the star she deserved to be!!!

based on the power of the emotions people were showing just a few minutes ago towards me with that torch, there was every chance peter was right. these olympics might just have be the thing me and lillian have been waiting for!

to be continued with the OH-lympic games!