Jarod trudged through the dank and dirty streets trying to avoid becoming a punching bag for the larger Shades along his work route, something that happened quite often.  His little corner of Hell was a niche on the wrong side of Buzz Lane down three flights of crumbling and dangerous stairs that led to his small dark cubbyhole.  This was where he spent his endless nights working and sometimes he even slept there to avoid the walk to his pathetic home through a maze of misery and fear.

In Hell it was always night, always hot and most importantly it was miserable, as it should be.  Toiling night after endless night in a profession he hated he thought about his life B.H. or Before Hell.  The life he once led, the riches he once held and the misery he caused were always on his mind, part of the constant torture befitting his special place in Hell. 

Thoughts were obsessive; he couldn’t escape the constant replay of his once wonderful life.  He couldn’t understand how he came to be here when his only crime had been his wanting to be loved and adored by any and all.  His interest in magic had begun at a young age with his need for some sort of acceptance by his peers.  As a small boy he had little natural ability and sports only highlighted his awkwardness.  His attempt to fit in led him to the only thing he seemed to be able to do; magic tricks.

Spending hours and hours practicing, he soon became proficient and the years spent in lonely endeavors finally brought forth positive results and he found his skills in demand.  Fame came at a young age and with it came the money and excesses and the acceptance he had longed for as a child. 

Surrounding himself with admirers, he learned to live in a reality that lacked substance and worth other than money and power.  He became arrogant and dismissive of others in his field and used any opportunity to belittle, discredit and show-up anyone that called himself a magician. 

It was at this time he felt the need to gather unto him a woman of beauty befitting his fame and stature, one that would show the world his worth and bare him beautiful children to carry his legacy, thus he found his prize in a small town and stole her away and corrupted her just as he corrupted all those around him. 

With the perfect mate at his side he married and had a child – a son, but the attention he lost from others as his son was introduced wore on his nerves and soon he learned to resent the small boy for stealing the appeal and adoration Jarod wanted.  It was at that time that he began to resent the ties he had to his wife and son and old obsessions began to take form, but this time he knew if he worked harder he would achieve a magnificence that would make him more famous and the news of his wife and child would fade into the background.  He wanted his life as it had been before his marriage and child so he began to distance himself from his family and obsessed on his tricks to the degree that his thoughts and mind were completely consumed and he had no time or room for anyone else. 

Many years and countless dollars were spent in his need to achieve the impossible and still he obsessed.  His ego had grown so large he soon compared himself to those of legend and made his first major mistake in dismissing the icons of religion as nothing more than magicians of their time.  His big reveal and the words he spoke incensed the faithful and Jarod soon found himself the focus of anger and ridicule. 

Anger and insecurity pushed Jarod to the limit and he did everything in his power to hurt “those” people by recreating the very things they believed “miracles”.  He took special pleasure in creating doubt in those who lived their lives according to an ancient text.   

Jarod spent his life working to find the real Magic telling everyone he was the only master of True Magic and scoffed at all religions as he spent hours constructing his wondrous tricks taking his inspirations from the very book he lobbied against.  His campaign against the other beliefs was now his life’s work and he spent many nights proud and boisterous with all his abilities. 

His fame spread and he commanded money and power as he was sought out by many in the industries of entertainment and influence, so much so that he found he could have his pick of any and many women and, despite his marriage, he took full advantage of the offerings.  His neglect finally led his wife to demand a divorce but he would not allow her to leave, in his mind she was his and would remain so until she died and thus he was also the reason his wife turned to alcohol and drugs.  He told himself over and over that he never purposely set about to hurt others but as a reflection in the late endless hours he worked he became aware that he caused havoc everyday and abandoned those he was supposed to love and care for. 

His need to entertain the masses with his talk of false gods and the rush he received in revealing how trickery was used to perform “miracles” was what he spent the rest of his life doing.  He spent little time with his son and instead perused the love and adoration with like-minded people even skipping his sons wedding for the chance to dine with royalty.  He told himself that the money he gave his son was of more importance than standing around to greet the mindless partygoers and used the same excuse as his grandson was born. 

Jarod believed if he threw money at his family they would let him to pursue the things he wanted.  He felt he did right by them by providing all the trinkets he never had as a child and although he wouldn’t release his wife from her vows he tried not to punish her too harshly.  These thoughts and his indifference to his son haunted him every waking moment reminding him of the havoc and misery he had left as his legacy.  He knew abandoning his wife and child and trying to upstage The Light had secured him a permanent place in Hell.