Then and Now.
Friendship.
Something that seems so natural in everyday life. In this business, in professional wrestling,it is very rare to find true friendship. You have so many acquaintances, temporary people who come in and out of your life on a whim, but real friends, people who stay with you who watch your back, and who will always be there whenever you need them are rare. The acquaintances are a dime a dozen, those temporary people who you meet at a show, or a gym, or a company that you are doing a few spots for. They are there, they are trying to get to know you and perhaps use you. That is the other side of this business, the side that so many people refuse to acknowledge and want to ignore exists.
The best part? When you are young it seems like you want to trust everyone. You want to believe that they have your best interests at heart and that no one will take advantage of you. If you come into the professional wrestling business and try and stay innocent? You are not going to be for much longer. It will be taken away from you, you will be used and thrown away. But sometimes you make a mistake. Sometimes you throw real friends away and before you know it you look around and you are alone.
Spike Kane..A man who Alex had known for almost a decade.Since Alex was a fresh-faced 18-year-old rookie straight out of high school who wanted to learn the art of professional wrestling. Spike was a few years older and wiser, who had been up and down both coasts of the United States, straight through the middle and through the southern states, all around Europe and even to Japan. Spike had seen so much in his time in the business, he befriended Alex at a young age, and after a time they decided to watch each other’s backs. Forming a team, going through other partners, trios stables groups, other members came and went but the one constant was spike and Alex. They became inseparable. Best friends always willing to take a bullet for one another, where one went the other followed, where one succeeded so did the other. If Alex got ahead he would reach down and pull Spike up with him and Spike would do the same thing.
It worked. Both men became world champions. Both men were well on their way to becoming Hall of Fame-level talents.
And they were going to do it as a team. As friends. As brothers.
Or at least that is what Alex believed. He trusted spike. He believed in him. He never thought in a million years that the guy with who he had trained since he was a teenager would look for a nice soft spot to stick the knife and betray him. But it happened.
”It’s just business...brother…” Spike’s words accentuated by his heavy Irish accent rang out through Alex's ears as he took the hard right hand. Alex hit the mat hard, hearing the crowd shocked. The punch itself isn't what hurt. In fact, it was nowhere near the hardest one that Alex had ever taken. What hurt was who did it and why. Alex had been surrounded by members of a group called the young guns. For men who he had been at war with for the better part of three years. For men who had come at Alex and Spike time and time again, they traded wins they traded championships, and they had surrounded the ring and come for him.
There was a roll from the crowd. Applause and happiness as Spike came from the back and ran down the ramp sliding under the bottom rope. A feeling of relief had washed over Alex. It was two against four but at least Alex had his friend who he knew had his back. It gave him a chance, or so he thought. But then, Alex had felted spikes hand wrapped around his elbow spinning him around right into a stiff right hand. It may as well have been a knife being stabbed deep into his back. And to be told it was just business? Alex got it. Business. He would always come first and everyone in professional wrestling was all about themselves, it was all about business. And it was then that Alex vowed he would never let personal issues interfere with business.
It really should not have come as a surprise to Alex. After all, Spike had taught him so many things now he had taught Alex his final lesson. There were no friends in this business, and you should never trust anybody.
For years that had been a mantra to Alex. A lesson that spike had taught him that seemed to influence almost everything he did. Alex went from companies company, using people as a means to an end to get where he wanted to be and to take the championships and accolades that he thought were his. He left a pile of broken and bruised egos and people in his wake. And he never cared. He never let himself feel pity, remorse, or empathy for anyone else in this business. Because after all, it was just business.
And business is exactly what the gym was.
Wolfslair.
In his quieter moments at the gym he would often drift off and stop thinking about his past. He would start thinking about the people who had come across his life and a different moment. People who he had a wrong and hurt. He was older now, his outlook was different. For the last three or four years Alex had been about preserving his legacy and passing on knowledge as Wellers building relationships with people in the business who he could trust and he felt a kinship with.
He had Austin, someone who he had always tried to help and improve from a rookie who had the raw talent and drive, to the seasoned veteran that he had become. The man who had been a world heavyweight champion and who had also ruled the wrestling world with Alex.
But, aside from Austin and the motley crew of personalities that had come and go from not just the New York gym but also the Florida one, there was Alicia Lukas.
She was a young woman who Alex had seen in Japan. A young woman who had the raw talent and ability that he had always looked for. He had helped her, trained her, and given her advice on how to properly use her talents and where to go in her career. It was not until many years later that they paths will cross again and Alex will see the kind of woman she has become. He had heard whispers, seen a few matches now and again while she was still in Japan as well as hearing that she was back in the United States. But it wasn’t until he saw her in action that you realise just how far she had come. And just how high her ceiling was.
He smiled and shook his head as she walked over. Still in her workout gear as she folded her arms over her chest and stood next to him watching the others work out. Austin working with some of the younger members. Alicia laughed under her breath and looked up at Alex. ”Big show coming up.”
It was of course an understatement. It was not just a big show, it was the biggest show. High stakes. The biggest show of the year for sin city wrestling. And Alex was going in as the world heavyweight champion. He was used to high-pressure situations. He was used to carrying companies on his shoulders. But now he was older, while he knew he was still a great talent with a great mind for the business he was not the young man he was before. He was not the young man who was ready to destroy his body just to prove a point. He had a family, a wife who loved him and children. He had a reason to take care of himself. He also had the gym, young talent to look to him for guidance and training. He was not used to it. Even after opening the gym he never really understood what it meant until recently as he embraced the role of mentor.
”Yep”
It was a simple one-word answer. Alex stood quietly, just staring ahead as Alicia gave him a small smile from the side of her face with another shake of her head. She had known Alex long enough to know when he was hiding things. He was hiding the turmoil inside himself. The self-doubt that always came with struggling to reconcile someone’s own past. A past that was filled with just as many failures as there were successes. Just as many losses as there were wins. Alex would always go into matches with the outward facade of confidence. But this was a world championship match, on the biggest stage the mall, against an opponent who had already beaten him and taken the championship off him once. No, Alicia was not falling for that shit.”You know, you don’t have to put the whole “strong silent” think on with me. Or Austin. We know what is going on….”
He closed his eyes and chuckled to himself. He tilted his head to the side and looked down at Alicia. ”Oh? Do you now?”
She moved around in front of him so her back was to the rest of the members of the gym who were training on the mats in front of them. She folded her arms over her chest puffing it out and pulling back her shoulders to show her confidence. Confidence that Alex had always respected, one that he always wanted to bring out of her, a confidence that was hidden behind those bright blue eyes that he remembered seeing in Japan all those years ago. ”It’s ok to fail….rewal champions, we take those failures….we keep them with us, admit to them...and then...we slaughter them...that’s what you’ve done...now you just have to finish it…”
She smiled arrogantly. Alex laughed to himself as he watched her walk away. She was right. He knew she was right. In fact, it was something that Alex had told her many years ago. This was the cycle of life. Lessons that you taught other people would now come back and be taught to you. But now, as Alex stood in the gym that he had created, as a world champion again, the doubt still remained.But all it did was fuel him.
Are we tired of redemption?
”I know what the majority of you are thinking.I, here is another speech from Alex Jones about redemption and everything that he has gone through. And I get it, sometimes you people aren't really into that. But here's the thing. Everything that I've gone through over the last couple of months, everything that I have done and every match I have had and accolade I have collected, every title and title defense that I have gone through, it is all led to this. Every single part of it. It's one of those full-circle things.
He laughed to himself. His arms folding over his chest as he moved to the side and reached down picking up the Sin City wrestling world heavyweight championship. He threw it over his shoulder, his left hand moving across and grasping one of the side plates as his thumb rubbed across the center plate and moved across his name tag.
”The first time that I became a world champion I could hardly believe it was happening to me. Being a world champion is something that everyone should aspire to be in this business. In fact, if you do not get into professional wrestling to try and be a world champion and show that you are the best then you are honestly doing it wrong. Yes I understand that some people just want to be entertaining, some people just want money, some people want fame, and some people just like to cause pain to others and this is one of the few professions that allows you to get away with that without going to jail. However, the world championship is the end result of all of the different roads you can walk down as you come into this profession. But as I said, the first time it happened I could barely believe it.I was just a kid, a few years into the business and I had reached the top of a mountain.There was a small part of me that was scared, fearful that the passion that I had for this business and what we do would now start to fade away because I had already accomplished the goal that I had set out to attain”
“Do you know what I found when I got to the top of that mountain? Higher mountains. More things that I needed to do and that I needed to accomplish. I wanted to defend the championship and make sure that my name became synonymous with it. I wanted to break records. I wanted to go down in history as the greatest person to ever hold that particular championship.Then it hit me that the reason why you see so many people who are clinging and clutching onto their spots, the entire reason why you see all these old are broken down beaten upwrestlers who refuse to quit and refuse to just retire is that they all have that passion and that need to try and get to the top of the next mountain. It’s a sad state of affairs in this business, but it's exactly where we have all been and it is where we are all going. Part of me admires the ones who are strong enough to walk away and say that enough is enough. But that simply isn't me. “
“Trust me, I tried.”
“Something just kept pulling me back in. And this time? It was one word and that one feeling.Redemption.That feeling that you have deep down inside yourself when you have let yourself down. Letting yourself down as well as members of your family and your friends is always painful. Even if your friends and family love you so much that they refuse to tell you that you've let them down. They'll tell you that they are proud of you and they will tell you that they have your back and they understand. But that feeling down in the pit of your stomach that is empty and feels like a black hole just won't go away. It will stay there and it will fester and it will consume you until there is very little of who you are left. That is where I was at in my life, that is the point I was at a year ago.I was arrogant and I was cocky and I almost ruined someone’s career just because I wanted to get my hands on something that at the time if I'm being brutally honest with myself, I didn't deserve.”
Alex turned his head and glanced at the championship dangling over his shoulder, a small smile twisting on his lips before staring ahead yet again to continue.
”I can admit that now and I can be honest with myself. I can look in the mirror and say that I was a horrible person and that I deserved to lose the championship the way I did. And I stood at the base of the mountain staring up and realizing that I had to start from square one at my age. It wasn't exactly something that I wanted to do but it was something that I needed to do. So I started climbing. I threw myself at the best this company had to offer like Ben Jordan, Vinnie, and Fenris. I had some of my greatest losses but also my greatest matches against the best of the best in this company. Legends and world champions. That led me to get my hands on the roulette championship and I was happy enough to defend that title and see where that road was going to take me before refocusing on anything else. I was happy in that division, I was happy there trying to gain that redemption and show the world that it doesn't matter which championship it is that you can make it worth something, and make sure your legacy is cemented. But it seems that fate was always going to intervene on my behalf.”
“MacBane took it upon himself to challenge me and defend his championships to me. A man who had come back to Sin City wrestling and had been one of the most dominant human beings ever to step in between those ropes.In a very short amount of time he won every championship he could win except for the mixed tag team championships. He won the Internet title, he won the roulette title, and then he went on to win this the Sin City Wrestling world heavyweight championship and he did it with ease .He didn't just beat Mark Cross, he embarrassed Mark Cross. He embarrassed Mark Cross so bad it doesn't even look like mark will ever fully recover and bring himself back to being the competitor that he was before Mack beat him.And that is the difference between people like Mark and myself. I got beaten, I started from square one and vowed I would crawland call my way backone match at a time. Mark seems like he just gave up.I made everyone who doubted me eat their words when I beat Mac, and then in the rematch when everyone thought he was going to walk in destroy me and take his championship back I proved them wrong.My road to redemption was almost complete. But there was one last name on that list….”
“Jack Washington.”
“And I cannot express to any of you how incredibly happy I was when Jack was able to win that triple threat match and earn his shot at me going into high stakes.I cannot fully explain how when I watched him get that win how hard it was to jump up out of my chair and then calm myself down. But, before Jack and I were going to get in the ring at high stakes one on one for the world championship, we got put in A tag team match where he had to team up with one of the challenges for Amber Ryan's bombshells championship while she teamed up with me. Now, while Amber and I got the win I can't really sit here and say that it was building any type of real momentum going into this one-on-one match.I will say, however, that it was a pleasure teaming with Amber and I am very glad that she didn't hold it against me that I beat her husband for the world championship.”
Alex smiles warm obviously sincere with his words towards Amber Ryan and the match that they had. He swallows hard and clears his throat getting ready to focus on his opponent and the upcoming championship match.
”Now, heading into this I’ve always been very big on telling my story and reminding everyone of my own failures. Because I feel like it is important to get over those failures by confronting them and overcoming them. And this is fitting going into the biggest show of the year facing the man who handed me my biggest defeat in this company.I was on top of the world when you and I faced each other Jack,I thought I was going through a renaissance, I had talked my way into a championship match and beat Griffin Hawkins, a guy who I honestly believed at one point I was friends with. But I was willing to betray that friendship just so I could get my hands on the world heavyweight championship. And at the time I didn't care. That loss to you and watching you walk away as the champion was a fitting end to the incredible failure I was as a champion.”
“See, a real champion can look at his failures and pick himself up. And that is what I've tried to do Jack. I didn't go searching for the world championship,I waited, I've learned my lessons and I've come back stronger. I honestly hope that you've learned your lessons and you are coming back stronger as well. You are getting a different Alex Jones this time. You are not getting the same ultra arrogant asshole that stopped caring about the sport of professional wrestling and the honor that we all have to live up to when we get into that ring. Last time you and I faced each other for this championship you walked in With your chest out and your nose up, not giving a shit about my past and who I was and where I've come from. You didn't care about my accolades or who I was. You shit all over me and you shit all over my career and it worked.”
“You got in my head, you put me off my game, and I paid the price for it.It was genius and I didn't give you enough credit at the time. But now I see it.You are wise beyond your years and you are also one of the best in this business and I said when you lost this championship that you would be back to try and claim it and here you are. Here you are getting ready to head into the biggest show that this company puts on into the biggest match that the company will put on.”
“And it isn't lost on me what this match will mean for you too.”
He gives a small shrug and removes the title from his shoulder setting it down with a heavy sigh.
”You have your own demons and your own redemption to think about. If you win this championship you will not just be a three-time world champion but you will also have a chance to defend this championship and break records, you'll have a chance to go on and live on and finally have that championship run that you believed you should have had when you beat me. As good as you are Jack you have never lived up to the hype or the potential that you've shown. You got in my head and beat me and then tried to be the champion that you thought you had to be only to fall in a heap not once but twice you stayed sniffing around this championship because you wanted another shot at it when you lost it the first time and you got it. While I went back and started from square one you made the mistake that so many others do and tried to push your way with blunt force back to the championship only to lose it again almost as fast.”
“But for me Jackthisis the logical endpoint. My changing attitude, the run that I went on in defending the roulette championship only to get hand-selected by a dominant champion to defend the world title against, to prove everyone wrong and win the championship and also defended against that same dominant champion when everyone said I was going to fail,it's almost poetic that it is now leading me into high stakes to face you.The arrogant upstart who took the championship off me the first time after I had taken so long to win it.I know how bad you want this Jack, I know how bad you wanna get your hands on it, and I know how bad you want to beat me again. To say that you beat me for a world championship once is a hell of a thing to have on your resume despite the fact that you will never admit it. But to beat me twice? For a world championship? That's almost unheard of. Good luck kid, you’re gonna need it.
Bridges and mistakes.
He still wasn’t sure this was the right idea.
A week out from a championship defense, a week out from facing Jack Washington at one of the biggest shows of the year. And here Alex was traveling across the country, from New York City, his home base, the home of Wolfslair, across to California. All based on a rumor. One that he had heard the day before. Spike Kane was alive. Not only was Spike alive but he was back in the business. Wrestling. Something Alex had mixed feelings about.
It had been years since he last saw Spike, years since Michael Patrick Kane and Alexander Jones were in the same room at the same time. And in a business like this where people often travel and see one another, even in passing, or through mutual friends, that was a miracle.
However, Spike had been long rumored to have died, a fact that Alex had lamented on but at the same time couldn’t find information on. So his reemergence, alive and breathing, it didn’t surprise Alex as much as it did others who take things at face value, or those who believe these things. Whispers in the dark. As he arrived at the building he shook his head looking over at the event poster, Spike Kane, front and center. Appearing in his first event in years. A legend returns.
It made Alex smile. Spike was always one for the promotion of his own legacy.
He pushed through the doors, moving into the large open area, the ring was being put up, Alex had called ahead, the promoter knew he was coming, yet he didn’t know why and knew better than to tell any of the boys and girls in the back he was going to be there, he flipped the hood on his sweatshirt up, moving passed the ring and towards the locker room. The makeshift dressing area was bustling with action. Laughter and jokes filled the air as well as that familiar smell. It felt like, well, home.
Alex has always felt comfortable in wrestling locker rooms. It was always filled with people like himself, grinding and working hard towards a similar goal. It was the reason he created Wolfslair.
He scanned the room, looking over at a door that was slightly cracked open, he took a deep breath and moved toward it, he knew spike was in there. Away from everyone else to prepare for the night. He moved over and could hear his voice, the hint of an irish accent, the same inflection he used to hear back in the day, he shook his head and reached out to opus the door, but, was this a mistake? So much time had passed.
While Spike had turned his back on Alex, it’s not like Alex didn’t return the favor tenfold. In fact, Alex hit Spike right where it hurt, pretending to be his friend again, gaining his trust, and saying he had Spike’s back, only to send his then-girlfriend, former wife, former business partner, Ana Valentine to seduce Spike, to make him fall in love with her, only to take his heart in her hands and crush it in front of him. To break him into a million pieces and destroy his humanity. He had no idea how this was going to go down. Truth was, Alex was ready for Spike to take a swing at him. In fact he was expecting it.
He pushed the door open, Spike looked up from having his knee wrapped, his smile faded, he looked up at the backstage trainer, lightly pushing him back as he placed the last piece of tape. ”Can you give me a minute?” The trainer gave a small nod, looking up with a surprised expression recognizing Alex. He moves through the door closing it behind him as Spike moved his leg off the table to the floor looking Alex up and down. ”Of all the people who could have walked in here I wasn’t expecting you…”
Alex couldn’t help but laugh, flipping his hood back and shaking his head. Spike hadn’t changed that much, his hair was a little shorter, slicked-back but tied up the top with an undercut, a bushy beard with a few streaks of grey, his tattoos had faded somewhat, but he had also added to them, and considering he had been “dead” he was in roughly impressive shape. ”Well, you know me, I always turn up in the most random places.” He chuckled with a shrug, Spike just stared ahead before getting to his feet. The two men coming eye to eye, Spike was a few inches taller but was not as big physically as he used to be.
Alex smirked, remembering their wars, their laughter. Fighting both against each other and beside each other in company after company. The original XHF, NCW, IWF. They held tag team titles together, fought over world titles, they did it all. Only for a woman to come between them. And the pursuit of power. ”So, why did you come all the way here to see me...last I heard you were in New York…”
Spike folded his arms over his chest, not really a hint of anger in his voice, Spike was calm, cool, and collected. ”Well, I’d heard rumors, I’m glad to see they weren’t true. But I had to see for myself.” He laughed, Spike gave a small nod moving his hand to his beard stroking it slowly.
”Yeah, I got sick, but you can’t kill whats already dead…”
An awkward silence, Alex knew what he was talking about, how he felt, and what he meant. He let out a groan and pulled his hand up to his face. ”I heard about your brother...I’m sorry man...Brad was...talented.”
Spike laughed, he shook his head. Stepping back. ”You didn’t come here to talk about my brother. Why are you here after all this time?”
He sighed and threw his arms in the air, Spike was waiting and Alex had no idea what to say or how to say it, he swallowed hard and gave a nod. ”Yeah, I get it. It’s unexpected. I just….I don’t know man. When you think about your past, the future seems different…” He paused, turning and sitting down on the couch, Spike tilted his head, trying to understand and he lets out a groan and pushes up to his feet.”Forget it man...it’s just great to see you’re alive, back in the ring. Goodluck Spike.” He held out his hand. Spike swallowed and raised an eyebrow looking down before reaching out and taking it.
”You two Alex…”
The first to the last
”You never forget your first.”
Alex smiles, his eyes staring off into the distance as if he is remembering a far-off place and time. The moment lingers a little bit too long and Alex finds himself needing to snap out of it. He lets out a heavy breath and shrugs his shoulders before turning his attention back towards us.
”At least, that's what they say.In many cases it's true.Most of us don't forget our first kiss, most of us don't forget our first true love,but there are some things that you do forget.Not many people remember their first step.The first time they were wrong.But one of the things that I remember and I will always remember is my first world championship.The first time that I was able to climb my way up the mountain, stand on top of it and say that I was the best in the world.And I had the proof to back it up.I've done it 11 Times now,and while I can remember each one, the one that means most to me and that is far enough away that it's amazing I can still remember it this way, is the first one.I remember it in such vivid detail sometimes it's like I'm there.”
“They say with age comes wisdom but the truth is thatI think with age comes an understanding.It's not really wisdom if it's just something that naturally occurs. Wisdom is something that you have to search for, something that you have to seek,but understanding is something that washes over you.I understand that I have less use in this business in front of me that I have behind me. I understand that eventually, like everyone else in this business, my body is going to breakdown and I'm gonna be unable to get in the ring. Or at least perform at the same level that I always have.I don't have that right now. Right now I'm still at the top of my game,I'm still in great shape, I can still go with anyone in this business not just this company.I don't care who their name is or what they've accomplished or what they will go on to accomplish there is not one man in this business that I can't get in the ring with and have a chance to beat.”
“And that definitely includes you Jack.”
“I have been at this so long that there's some companies that I've get I've even wrestled for. Moments in time that people talk about that I honestly don't remember.And this isn't because of some weird concussion symptom, this is just because I have had so many moments in professional wrestling that some of them dim,some of them just don't shine as bright as others.Every single time I've become a world champion has been burned and etched into my mind.But the ones that are relevant to this company,well, they haven't been as bright as I would have hoped.While I can look at my 2runs as theon a wrestling world champion and smile, be proud of what I accomplished,the ones in this company? Not so much.”
Alex pauses, following a certain trend lately of him being brutally honest with not just himself but with everyone else. He takes in another deep breath looking away for a moment and staring forward before exhaling and continuing.
”There are some people who will sit there and talk about how they don't care that I did things before stepping foot in a Sin city wrestling ring.Some who didn't know my name when they first met me.Most of them do now, most of them have admitted their mistake.But if you don't look at the past and see it as a key indicator of what can happen in the future then you are just a fool.In my case, that means being brutally honest with myself about my performances against some of the best in this company.I tried with everything I could to beat people like Ben Jordan and Fenris. I really did.But they were better than me.I tried with everything I could to successfully defend the Sin city wrestling world championship against you Jack.And I failed.We all know it.”
“The Alex back then who you faced, he would have called it a fluke. He would have said that you didn't deserve to be in the ring with him and that you were lucky.The voice of an insecure man whowas not comfortable with his place in this business anymore.Someone who thought that if he wasn't loud and brash that he would be forgotten.Maybe some people will forget me,maybe they'll act as if I never existed.But some people will always remember.The mark I have left on this business this company and the people that I have not just trained but also pushed forward to become champions themselves is going to be felt for a very long time.And that is a way to be remembered Jack.But now?Now I can see everything so much clearly.”
“It wasn't luck that allowed you to beat me Jack. It wasn't even me beating myself with my own hubris and arrogance.”
“The answers to why is a very simple one.On that night when I defended the championship against you, and you were able to beat me, was because you were better.That's it, no caveat, no excuse.On that night Jack Washington was the better man and was able to beat Alex Jones for the world championship.You got in my head with things that you did and things that you said, you brought my defences down, and you got in the ring and you executed your plan and walked away with that championship.That isn't an excuse, that isn't me deflecting blame, that isn't me ignoring the mistakes that I made all the things that you did well.That is me being honest. Honest with you honest with myself honest with the company and honest with the fans. I look at the past, and I realised that I had to learn from it.That was why I went on the story of redemption.”
Alex chuckles taking a few steps as he turns back.
”A story that began and would now end with you.Either I will walk into that ring, and successfully defend my championship against you. Or I will fail again.If I'm able To successfully defend this championship against you,then I'll be able to say that my redemption is complete. If I fail, and you beat me,then I stumbled at the last hurdle, I will pick myself back up, and I will start a new story.Because that's what we do Jack.You fail and you pick yourself back up,you don't run and hide.You don't disappear and then come back stomping your feet wanting everything handed to you like a child. You don't demand things based off of your past performance,something that I did.But I don't want you to get it twisted.”
“You seem to think that me admitting my failures is some kind of weak you said it yourself,you started going on about how no one cares about me and you questioned where the Alex Jones was the faced you a few years ago. I already told you where that Alex Jones went. And I thought maybe, just maybe that you would be better than this.I really did.I was waiting forthe Jack Washington that we'd all hoped you would be to come to the surface. To have all of this passion bubble up and want to face me and want to prove that you were better than me and want to prove that your last championship reign was a mistake and that you were ready to be the champion that we all thought you could be. But instead I get the disrespectful, arrogant, self righteous little prick.”
“So much talent, but so little brains. Instead of learning from your past mistakes and trying to be better like I have you have decided instead to double down on everything that screwed you up in the first place. Instead of showing that you weren't going to walk down that same path and screw up again you have done the same thing. disregarding who i am and who i was ...Ignoring the path that I've walked. Ignoring my accomplishments and what I have done in your absence. Disregarding them like they were nothing.Trying to get in my head again.But this timeI don't get angry Jack.I'm not looking at you thinking that you are some ignorant little child who I need to punish.I see someone who is going to forever be stuck in the same box, with the same personality, saying the same things over and over and over again because he is too stubborn and arrogant to change. And I understand that is the pot calling the kettle black with everything I have done in mycareer. But in the same breath that you questioned why I've changed you then attacked Mac”
“You devalue the company and yourself with every single thing that you say.You say that Max sucked, you say that I suck,let me ask you a question Jack.If all of us were so terrible,and none of us deserve anything and you are the bright shining light and be all end all of this company and this business then why are any of us even here? If everyone you beat at everyone you face are no bodies then what exactly have you accomplished? You beat me for the championship and you have just beaten someone whose accomplishments in your eyes mean nothing.And what's worse in this entire situation is that you seem to have got it all wrong. You think I believe I don't have a chance against you.Because so many other people think that I'm automatically going to lose to you you are starting to believe that I believe it.Those same people didn't think I could beat Mac, those same people didn't think I could beat him the second time. Those same people didn't think I could become the roulette champion, and those same people didn't think I would defend the roulette championship.”
Alex chuckles again showing the kind of mindset he's in as he relaxes.
”I have made a career out of proving people wrong, however, this last year has been the first time it has ever felt right. This last year has honestly been the greatest time in my career because I've just learned to let go. You have this anger inside you Jack, and it's one that you seem to want to take out on everyone, this giant chip on your shoulder that is weighing you down and stopping you from becoming the champion and of the competitor that we all know you can be. You would rather look at a man like me talk down about all of my accomplishments not just in this company but my entire life's work then admit to yourself that you are facing someone who is better than you and I am Jack,you look at my career and what I accomplished by the time I was your age as well as what I have done now comma and I am better than you full stop I have the track record and I have the proof to be able to say that. You have one win, one win for this championship,”
“And I was able to admit that on that night you were better than me, but one night and one moment does not make a career anymore than it breaks one. You need to be able to back it up, you need to be able to stand up and take accountability for your failures and you have not been able to do that. So I'm going to help you,you are going to lose to me at high stakes and you are going to be forced to look at your failures and grow up.It's the best thing I can do for you Jack, the best thing for the business, the best thing for the championship. And in that, maybe I will find my redemption.”