Chapter 1: How Britney Finally Released The Truth
Sometime in the near future
Darkness. Darkness was the only thing that welcomed the long procession of tour buses and tractor trailers that proceeded through the sleeping town of Cole, Colorado. Their headlights cut a swath of light that lead them to the outskirts of the bustling town and the beginnings of the Rocky Mountain wilderness the stretched through Colorado.
Just at the edge of said wilderness stood a newly erected stage, complete with orchestra pit, lighting arrangements and a control booth. Chain link fences divided the outlying areas into very specific and coordinated grids all designed for one thing, to put on a hell of a show.
The whole setup was a shake and bake operation designed for ease of installation and removal and had been set up to give a promotional concert for six thousand very lucky fans. In the works for three months, tickets had been available for two months and had been sold out for three weeks. As you probably already know when word gets out that a singer like Britney Spears is giving a promotional concert, which means free tickets, they don't last long.
The idea itself had been Britney's, well that's not entirely true, the location had been her idea. She was tired of everyone oohing and aahing over the east coast and the west coast, she wanted to do some thing in the west, with the Rocky Mountains as the backdrop. Despite a few nasty rumors about her, Britney really was, for lack of a better word a sweetheart, an incredibly gorgeous one, but still a sweetheart.
So as the caravan of vehicles pulled up to the complex and through a waiting gate into a secure area where they would be separated by a fifteen-foot high fence from the outside world, Britney smiled in satisfaction as she waited for the driver to open the door. When he did she was the first person out the door, followed closely by her manager and long time friend Chris Watkins, her dance choreographer Peter Neuman, and the special effects coordinator Jim Greene. Britney, however, paid no attention to them for the moment as she looked up at a sky she was completely unaccustomed to.
By her trade she was always in an area where there were so many lights, you were lucky to see a single star. But here, she had the entire Milky Way spread out before her eyes with not a single street light or haze of smog to obstruct the twinkling stars that were out there. The sound of metal banging and loud voices interrupted her as the rest of the stage crew began to unpack all the equipment and rush to begin setting up for the show on the following night. Soon the bass heavy rhythm of a song began to beat out of a portable stereo as the backup dancers began to warm up in order to go over their routine for an hour or so before calling it a night.
"Well, Britney, what do you think?" asked Chris, as he stepped up next to her, handing her a heavy sweatshirt to help with the chill of the mountain air.
She smiled as she took the sweatshirt and pulled it on, shaking out her long blonde hair in the process.
"I think it's perfect," she replied as she smoothed the fabric over her lithe upper body, ignoring the curves and swells that had become the wet dream of every straight male who has ever seen her.
Chris nodded his assent as he turned to look back at Jim and Peter. " What do you guys think?"
Jim nodded also. " With this kind of backdrop, no confined buildings and the type of crowd we're gonna get, we can really let loose with the pyro's and confetti bombs this time."
Britney shook her head. " You should have been a demolitions expert, you always love to blow shit up," she said, laughing.
Jim shrugged. " Just to make sure you make an entrance, babe."
Britney cocked an eyebrow. " Oh I can make an entrance all right," she said, slyly as she teasingly pulled up the bottom of her sweat shirt revealing her firm, tan stomach and twinkling diamond stud that pierced the skin of her belly button, then just as quickly yanked it back down, laughing.
Jim moaned. " Just be glad I'm married and love my wife," he said, laughing as well.
"I don't know what you two think is so great about this place," Peter cut in. " I just know we're going to be eaten alive by mosquitoes. I hope you brought bug repellent because you're little ass is going to get covered with bites," he said, fuming.
Britney rolled her eyes, this time for real. Peter was one of the best choreographers that ever came out of Hollywood. His talent was unmatched, he could take a boring, slow song and completely save it on the stage with his dance routines and often gymnastic moves. But like most talented male artists in his area he was gay, and he complained constantly, the only time he didn't, Britney had joked was when he slept.
"Well," Chris said after clearing his throat. " Maybe we should take a walk around the stage and see how it turned out," he suggested, as he began making his way back towards the gate leading into the backstage area.
"Okay," Britney agreed, turning to follow him.
"Hey!" Jim yelled to them. They stopped and turned back to him. " Check it out, one of your fans has showed up early."
Britney looked past Jim across the field to the edge of the tree line that ran up into the mountains and marked the edge of the large field they stood in, but saw nothing. She walked over and stood next to Jim.
"Where?" she asked.
He raised his arm and pointed across the field and at that moment a movement caught Britney's eye. The form she saw immediately materialized into a horse and rider as they stepped out of the trees into the tall grass of the field.
"Oh my it's a fucking cowboy," Peter said, sarcastically. " I thought they were all dead or something."
Britney rolled her eyes at his comment and studied the man on the horse who could not have been more than a football field away. Not much was visible of him as he wore a long black coat, and a white cowboy hat that shielded his face from her gaze. He seemed completely sure of himself and it was obvious that he was watching them as the horse pranced nervously from the sound of the music, turning in tight circle in the process, but the rider's gaze never left them. And Britney was almost sure that he was looking directly at her.
She felt strange seeing him there like that. Britney knew that was a man, and in her imagination he must have been quite a man. But not seeing his face, or even a hint of it because of the dark made him seem more like a phantom. She shivered as she felt his unwavering gaze upon her, and suddenly she had an overwhelming urge to walk out there and see him.
Just as she was about to walk out there, she saw the horse wheel back in the direction it had come, rear up on its hind legs and then run back through the trees. Britney was stunned at the performance; she had never ridden a horse before so she was unaware of how to control one and wondered how anyone could do so.
