Atlanta, Georgia. Wednesday 21st February. (Offline)

It was my therapy session day as the other days I was busy either racing at Daytona or wrestling in other companies. Saying that, it had been an eventful week, especially debuting in NFW yesterday and was a success. I already made the decision to temporary leave UGWC because I just had enough of wrestlers shitting on my activities that had nothing to do with wrestling or racing. Granted if it had been wrestling, I would stay, but it wasn't. That was to be said more during the week though as my therapist Cameron, despite him telling me earlier today that I have a female sports therapist Josephine Perry I will meet next week.

We were back in my home where I soak in the glory of winning all the Atlanta Motor Speedway races as I'm undefeated on that track, but Cameron saw something online for me that he wanted to discuss with me as we already shared sugar-free Celsius drinks. Granted, Rockstar Energy were still going to be my sponsors, but because my team had Celsius sponsors, I also had them as well and got some German sponsors along with it too. Anyway, he gets into detail of what he wanted to talk about.

Cameron: “I saw something online that is pretty interesting to the situations you've told me about you were struggling.”

Konrad Raab: “Oh yeah, what's that?”

Cameron: “I came across Sin City Wrestling, doing this Blast From The Past Tournament.”

Konrad Raab: “Oh come on Cameron, that company doesn't allow us guys wrestle against women, how is that going to make me the top wrestler if I just beat male wrestlers consistently?”

Cameron: “Wake up Konrad, this is not about you being the top wrestler, well part of it is when it comes to one of the goals I want you to think about, but I feel this would be good for you.”

I shook my head as I wanted nothing to do with the company, especially after how Jake was treated with some of the wrestlers that were still there. Granted glad Griffin Hawkins was gone, I hated that guy with a passion and he was overall a hypocrite and talks crap behind people's backs like a coward he is.

Konrad Raab: “I still haven't forgotten how they treated my cousin last time he wrestled there. He got treated horribly by his colleagues because Jake told the truth about twitter being for cowards. He hasn't really found the motivation to want to wrestle in the business since.”

Cameron: “Konrad, that's in the past with your cousin. You're ignoring what we've spoken about earlier. You need to be in this tournament quite frankly because you have social anxiety, this would help you have a friend in wrestling, especially female. I don't recall you having a female wrestling friend actually.”

Konrad Raab: “That's where your wrong. I have a female wrestling friend called Kimberly Williams. I like her because we pushed our limits towards each other and we respect each other. It was my fault admittedly I didn't recognise Kim respecting me earlier. That's all on me.”

Cameron widened his eyes, I haven't told him about friends I had in the other company as it was unrelated to the situation I wanted to tackle and none of the problems I had were happening in Supreme Championship Wrestling, despite Cameron knows I wrestle there too. I drank more of the energy drink.

Cameron: “Despite that, you still need to overcome your social anxiety. As far as I recall, I've never once heard or seen you interact with anyone in the wrestling business apart from your family and the team we won't discuss.”

Konrad Raab: “Made my life a living hell last time I tried. People just don't give a damn about me.”

Cameron: “It's a good thing I suggest for you to sign up to encourage you to talk to someone you don't work with and they'll listen to you because they don't know you very well. I see friends don't work well for you when your in the same company. Get yourself out there and start talking to people in wrestling.”

Konrad Raab: “There's more to it, isn't there why you want me to sign up?”

I knew it in Cameron's body language that he had more to offer to me than anything he was saying and knew there was more to it than being randomised with a female partner to have a friend to talk to on confronting my social anxiety and stop the social anxiety attacks from happening when talking to wrestlers.

Cameron: “Yes. The other thing you've spoken to me about is the pressure of you being scared of doing World Title matches. That's where this tournament comes to play to overcome that too. When you and your female partner win, you literally have no choice, but to challenge the World Champion of Sin City Wrestling.”

Konrad Raab: “You know I feel psychically sick each time I think about being World Champion because it's always the feeling I had since I got into this business. I never feel I'm good enough to be a world champion.”

Cameron: “Because mentality when it comes to that as you'll discover next week, your quite weak for not believing in yourself. I understand the pressure Konrad, but you can't run away from situations like that the rest of your life. I suggest for you to sign up and enter, otherwise, our therapy sessions are permanently terminated as I can't help someone who doesn't want to overcome his insecurities.”

Konrad Raab: “Alright, fine for fuck sake. I sign up for this bullshit tournament.”

Cameron: “Good, I expect to see you do it first thing tomorrow morning and I won't leave the house until I've seen you do so.”

It was pretty serious because I did need Cameron by my side to help me overcome my anger issues as truthfully, I didn't want to be angry to the world anymore, but I don't know how to combat my anger. Although I realised I felt I was angry so much that it became a hobby for me to be angry and piss people off since my life in the wrestling business was non existent.

I use racing to keep my mind off from wrestling and do something other than doing combat sports that many wrestlers resort to. Plus racing relaxes me over doing boxing or MMA. Cameron went and left me alone after that small discussion we had and I just went into my sim machine to get more practice done for Atlanta Motor Speedway, although I know the track from the back of my hand since I was the king of Atlanta.

----------------------------------------------------


Dover, Delaware. Friday 26th April. (Offline)

Things have changed dramatically over the last few years. I have gone from being just a professional wrestler to being both a professional wrestler and a professional racing car driver. I was even known more than just being a NASCAR Xfinity Series driver. I was a dirt car driver. I also do the tarmac oval series with the Cars Tour, ASA Stars Tour, and Snowball Derby, which I won last year and was automatically entered this year.

I also did the IMSA Rolex twenty-four-hour race for the first time this year, and I'm already in talks with the manager of the team I drove within IMSA about doing it again next year because I loved driving the HyperCars. To date, they were the fastest cars I've ever driven. The good thing is I rarely ever race on the same days as I wrestle, making the schedule more manageable. However, I must retire from wrestling at one of the companies to chase for the Cup Series Championship.

So I did practice and qualifying for the Xfinity Series race tomorrow at Dover Motor Speedway and did solid with the car. Being on a new team, I already felt like I was part of the family more than I had ever been in the last three years on a previous team, despite being the Xfinity Series champion last year. It was hectic at the race track, and I was there for my job, but at the same time, I was walking around the paddock for another reason: to meet with a professional wrestler that wasn't in my family or my team for the first time in a long time. Known as my partner for the Blast From The Past Tournament, Bea Barnhart.

It took me a while to find her, as I didn't know what she looked like other than seeing her bio picture on the SinCW profiles. I knew I had to be careful not to get both SCW wrestling companies mixed up, sharing the same name, so I called Blast From The Past SCW SinCW. Ten minutes later, I saw Bea talking to a wrestling fan, which is common in these parts of NASCAR. After the fans went away, I walked up to Bea.

Konrad Raab: “You must be Bea Barnhart, right?”

Bea Barnhart: “Indeed I am.”

Konrad Raab: “Good to hear. Now, away from the busy paddock, as you can tell, we need to talk in private. I don't discuss the wrestling business with NASCAR staff or people themselves. I know where to go."

Bea nodded as I was very strict about talking about the wrestling business in front of NASCAR staff and even my team, although they knew I was a wrestler, and the only time I talked about wrestling was when fans discussed it. But Bea was a wrestler, not a wrestling fan. So I took her to my changing room and talked about the racing business area, but mechanics and pit crew were understandably there.

Konrad Raab: "Guys, I need to talk with Bea alone. I’ll catch up with the car stuff and how it felt tomorrow."

They left without asking questions, as they knew I needed some space at times, and this was one of the times I did. Bea walked in and widened her eyes on the changing room and race discussion meetings alone.

Bea Barnhart: "It's amazing."

Konrad Raab: "That's nothing compared to my motorhome here. But we're not here to talk about that."

Bea Barnhart: "Oh yes, the Blast From The Past Tournament. I thought you were Lord Raab because you both look alike."

Konrad Raab: "No, he's my twin brother, though; that's likely the mix-up."

Bea Barnhart: "I've meant to ask why you've entered the tournament?"

That was the topic I did want to bring up, and I don't blame her. She had every right to ask me that question, considering it was under very odd circumstances for me to be in the tournament when I could've easily focused solely on SupremeCW and NFW efforts. But there's a significant reason for it, as I cleared my throat, relaxing the anxiety of meeting anyone new like Bea.

Konrad Raab: "I intended to make a new wrestling friend, not in my family or a team I got in SupremeCW. I have nobody to talk to about things in wrestling. I've lost all of my friends because of either my extreme anger issues that are getting worse or have betrayed me. I've never been successful in tag wrestling because of my trust insecurities."

Bea Barnhart: "I can relate; my husband has some anger issues too, although he hides it with the comedy stuff he does at times."

Konrad Raab: "Also, my therapists say I need to overcome my social anxiety. They put me in the tournament to help that."

Bea Barnhart: "I understand, and I can tell your body language is anxious. You are afraid of social interactions. I won't tell anyone about anything you say."

That was the friend I needed, one who would not go and spread shit about me, unlike wrestlers in UGWC who shamelessly still required to bring my name up every five minutes and still talked shit about me behind my back on Twitter like a bunch of pussies. It always grinded my gears on people doing that. I stood up and got two cans of Celsius sugar-free energy drinks from the fridge. I gave one to Bea.

Bea Barnhart: "Thanks, I needed that."

Konrad Raab: "You're welcome. The thing is, I need you to understand that we are going to work as a team. Of course, I hate the ruling that women are unable to fight men, but at the same time, you do whatever you have against the female wrestler you face, and I tackle whoever the guy is we'll face."

Bea Barnhart: “With anger, right?”

Konrad Raab: "Yes, and with violence unleashed in me. I need to beat the shit out of people because, mentally, everyone has fucking wronged me in the past. Everyone has made my life a living hell, my dad who used to beat me psychically and mentally and people within the wrestling business and you better not become the next person to stab me in the back."

I always make people scared when I use my anger towards them, and I always feel bad about it, but Bea, because she was a wrestler, and wasn't at all phased by my anger. It was clear she was used to it with Bill. I opened the can and drank my Celsius drink with a few sips, as did Bea.

Bea Barnhart: "I won't, I promise. I'm in the tournament to be paired with Bill, but it wasn't to be with how random the names are drawn. Besides having a dog, Bill isn't named as Bulldog for no reason. He’s an angry man at times."

Konrad Raab: "Really? I have two dogs, Frankie and Justin, although they are English Mastiff breeds. I have them to tackle my social anxiety and my mental health, but it hasn't had an effect yet so far. They are father and son. Frankie got a dog knocked up because I didn't have the time to get him sprayed, but he is now."

Bea Barnhart: "Wow, that's one hell of a story. We only have one dog, Iris, the English Bulldog, around us. We're from Lawrenceville, Georgia."

This was interesting as we lived in the same state, well, with it being my holiday home. I live there as well, but not as much as Chicago. I scratched my head and saw so many similarities.

Konrad Raab: "We're from the same state. I also have a home in Georgia, too, but in Atlanta. Honestly, I'm a huge name there, and I go there when I'm down in the dumps to remind myself of my successes there. I'm undefeated at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Everyone talks about other winners, but I'm the most famous one. I recently got my VIP spot named after me because of my successes."

Bea Barnhart: "But I heard you live mainly in Chicago."

Konrad Raab: "I do, but it's only because a wrestling company always wrestles there. Truthfully, if I wanted to live in a permanent home, it would be in Atlanta, Georgia. I recently got two more holiday homes in Daytona Beach, Florida, despite how much I hate the place, but because I do a lot of dirt and NASCAR racing there and Charlotte, North Carolina, for my team's shop."

Bea Barnhart: "I'm guessing you don't like Florida because of hurricanes."

She got me, she obviously knew about my protests for climate change which I have been heavily promoting, which nobody gives a damn about, and that pisses me off royalty. It was why I was on a vegan diet to protect animals and living things around us. I snapped my fingers at her.

Konrad Raab: "Exactly. Climate change is something I've been so heavily into ever since the flooding happened in Germany a couple of years ago, and it hit me so hard that I decided to do something about it. That's why I'm also with this team; they are all about running charities and doing things to promote different things, so they are helping me hugely with that because it pisses me off people are ignoring it. There's a twenty-year-old guy who runs a stop suicide charity."

Bea Barnhart: "That's amazing."

Konrad Raab: “It sure is. We all do something to give back to the community."

Bea Barnhart: "We kind of want to run a charity to prevent dogs being homeless, killed and beaten, but don't know how we can do that."

I nodded. I had tried animal charities in the past, and when I did, I was banished from doing animal charities for the rest of my life. However, I was also against animal cruelty. It made me sick. I was banished because of something that wasn't my fault.

Konrad Raab: "I'll talk to Matt Kaulig tomorrow, who runs a lot of charities, and see what we can do about that. I'm against it as much as you are, but sadly, I can't do anything because of stupid fucking ass World Wrestling Headquarters booking me against a real-life wrestling bear, and because I harmed it due to no fault of my own, I was banished from doing so."

Bea Barnhart: "I'm so sorry that they resorted to that. But it would be great. You help me with that, and I help you be the great friend you need in the wrestling business. That's what makes us a team already, and we all do our part to win the tournament and get a title shot."

Konrad Raab: "Well, that's another reason, too. I've never had the confidence to challenge for the Heavyweight title, and that's why my therapists put me in the tournament. Also, if I win it, I'd have no choice but to confront my fears and challenge the Heavyweight champion for the title."

Bea Barnhart: "We'll be the assholes to go and beat every male and female wrestler and get ourselves a title shot. I've never held a solo’s title in SCW, but my husband has."

Konrad Raab: "Well, you got a tag partner that can easily help you. I'm a piece of shit to other people, but you, you're quite entertaining, but at the same time, you need to step up where it matters most. We will succeed because we're helping each other to be the top wrestlers, and all these idiots are too selfish to help their partners get there, being all about themselves."

Bea agreed with me as we shook hands and exchanged each other's numbers as we finished drinking our Celsius drinks. Then, she left the changing room and meeting area every driver had in the paddock. Some, like my friend AJ, had two. Anyway, she left to go and watch ARCA Menards Series racing in the grandstands.

I need to see the ARCA Menards Racing Series myself, considering I'm participating in their series this year. Portland and Sonoma road course races are in the West Series, and Watkins Glen road course races are in the main ARCA series. The one thing about my Xfinity Series championship run I hated last year was not getting a road course win.

I watched the ARCA Menards Series race with the spotters and team owners standing with a team my teammate was with when he had to be in the ARCA Menards Series to race the Daytona race. I also had the same car and number as him before I headed off to bed in my motorhome.

-----------------------------------------

Never thought I had any reason to do tag matches with a random partner, but I needed to blog (Online)

“You know, I love how pathetic some of you are, using this tournament to debut yourselves as under your father and brother names just because you couldn't be arsed to actually put in the work to deliver. Makes me sick so many wrestlers these days leech from their family members instead of thinking outside the box for other goals. I had to fly to America to make a debut in wrestling because there was no wrestling promotions in Germany back in those days to start anywhere but America. Why do family leechers need to debut in the tournament instead of debuting on a regular Climax Control show, because you won't win a title or something? It's stupid.

I'm not a debuting wrestler leeching off my twin brother, I'm already a name in the wrestling business and I became a wrestler before my twin brother did, although he did use my name to get into the business, but he could because we looked so alike and we didn't realise at the time we were twin brothers until he and I got caught by police since someone in Germany reported the name and we went under lawsuit over it, so much so that we had to change our real names. Oh and before you wrestlers say silly shit, I don't speak to the camera or that fancy stuff anymore. I write in my blogs about you all because it turns out I write better than I can talk and talking to the camera is so overrated and uncreative now.

The thing is I'm in this tournament because I had to be, not because I want to or making myself a name. Mostly because my stupid therapist put me in this tournament or rather he would not be my therapist anymore if I didn't sign up. But he had a point because the two things that exist in this tournament are the problems I consistently face every day. I let you idiots figure those two things out.

I let Bea talk about Sin City Wrestling bombshell Kallie Reznik mostly because it would make someone read as if I'm a coward if I started talking trash to someone I can't face in the ring. But all I say is she has been impressive since Kallie got into Sin City Wrestling and winning every match if I remember correctly.

But the problem is I have no idea who Artie is or what he'll do in the wrestling ring as there's no information whatsoever to know what his in ring style is or anything. We can't assume he'll have the same as his wife, every wrestler is different. I can't even say he's a joke or anything since we know absolutely nothing of his in ring ability or if he's had practice matches. All I know is he entered in this tournament by accident just for your wife Bobbie Dahl to enter which she was more than capable of doing herself without you anyway.

But I can't really criticise you for that, no because you see, you came into the business almost like how I did, except I fought a champion in my first match as a non wrestler at that twelve years ago now and I got beaten in five minutes. Except you never wanted to be a professional wrestler, did you? It makes me sick I had to cut so many damn corners to want to be a wrestler because Germany didn't have any wrestling schools or promotions like they do now, but you randomly threw yourself into this like the family name leechers.

You officially made yourself stupid for doing that and I'm not going to call you a joke, I don't know what you're capable of since you're too afraid to put your information out there, keeping it a secret like a pussy you already are. I was forced into this tournament and I aim to fucking deliver. Also I highly doubt you and Kallie have met up because you and the rest of the teams are in this match for yourselves.

Not to help your tag partner to get the world title shot, just doing it for yourself which is sad and pathetic. Me and Bea, we've already met each other up, we already know what our goals are, but we are also working towards being friends too because apart from one other girl, my family and my team, I have zero friends to talk to. Bea was there when I needed her and we are there for each other.

That's the factor for us that all you other teams lack is none of you are going to work with your partners or even meeting them up to discuss plans. I know it's ironic for me to say this, considering working with people hasn't been my strong suit since I was stabbed in the back by wrestlers a few years ago, but that's a fact. None of you are willing to overstep the boundaries that actually, your partner can be key to getting your world title shot.

That's what I think about here with Bea. But you are in a whole world of pain you'll suffer from me and I know, you'll have me confused with Lord Raab, like Bea did, but he's my twin brother so I understand the confusion. I have burned people in the past, I've been burned myself a few months ago actually so you could say I'm a very violent wrestler and Bea sure, she has lost a ton of matches, but I can easily work my way through with her on my side to win because you are literally stupid if you have to bitch and moan about lack of your partner's skills, pussy behaviour honestly.

But me and Bea are going to violently beat the shit out of the pair of you, more with me and Artie who has no business being a professional wrestler, all because his wife is which is why I will never date professional wrestlers. I will beat the living daylights out of you Artie because you had it coming for a while and there's nothing you can do to stop team firedog from winning this match or this tournament to rob our chances to be world champions and that's what we're here to do. If you aren't, take a fucking hike. You're fucked and done for.”

OFF CAMERA
Location: Kaneohe, Hawaii
Date: April 29, 2024
 

Eiley carefully adjusts her tank top and simple pair of spandex shorts as she stands outside of Mikah’s gym in Kaneohe, Hawaii. She takes a breath before gaining some confidence before cautiously walking through the front doors of the gym. She looks around the gym, only standing in the entrance to the gym and she could see that the upstairs work out area was  buzzing with activity and then her eyes move to rings that were set up in the main level of the gym. She could see that Mikah was in the ring, working with Kendall and maybe a new student or two, she didn’t really know. The place was buzzing with activity and Eiley was for the most part, going unnoticed.

Eiley jumps back as three kids run in from outside and nearly knock her over.

••eiley•• “Hey!”

Two of the kids mostly ignored Eiley but the youngest, Myles, turns back at her. She watches the frown on the four and a half year old’s face before the look of realization hits him. Eiley watches as he stops to look at her before giving her a cheeky grin and then running off to follow his siblings through the gym. Eiley just stands there for a moment, trying to think thoroughly about her next step. She doesn’t have a lot of time to think as she has seemingly gathered Mikah’s attention.

Eiley watches as a few different emotions seem to run over Mikah’s face before Mikah seems to gather control of her emotions and returns to a neutral state. Eiley sighs as she moves towards the ring, walking slowly as she does as she wasn’t sure what sort of reaction Mikah would have towards her. Mikah steps out of the ring and Eiley sort of shrinks back as she sees the slightly angry look on her face. She wasn’t sure what to expect from Mikah but she didn’t expect that Mikah would be this angry.

;;MIKAH “You have some nerve..”

Eiley just swallows, hard as she moves to stand her ground, not wanting to back up from Mikah. She wanted to show that she wasn’t scared of the Hall of Famer and that she was confident enough to stand her ground.

••eiley•• “Uh…”

She barely has any time to think about what was going to happen next or even contemplate what she was going to say because Mikah cuts her off.

;;MIKAH “Do you know how long you’ve been out of reach? Do you know how many times somebody in this building has tried to contact you? Or do you even care?”

Eiley just looks at Mikah with a deer in the headlights sort of look as she tries to think quickly of an excuse for her absence. But it is clearly not something that she has thought too much about as she struggles to come up with a reason or an excuse. Mikah was still looking at her as if she was waiting for a proper response and Eiley continues to struggle with a proper reasoning.

••eiley•• “I’m sorry! I just…needed some space.”

The look on Mikah’s face did not scream that she was impressed with the reasoning that Eiley had given her. Eiley shifts her weight a little uncomfortably under Mikah’s stare as it doesn’t seem to waiver at all, staring at Eiley as if she was waiting for the actual truth and not just something that Eiley was saying to save face.

;;MIKAH “Space? As if the ocean isn’t enough space for you to be able to collect whatever feelings that you were feeling? I’m pretty sure Hawaii would have given you enough space to sort through whatever shit you needed to without disappearing on everybody.”

Eiley just looks at her for a moment, processing what Mikah was saying. But it was almost as if Mikah didn’t have that much patience for Eiley anymore. Eiley couldn’t understand why Mikah didn’t understand where she was coming from.

••eiley•• “You wouldn’t understand. And how could you? When you were in SCW, you always had a following and you had run the division for so long. You never needed to have space to think.”

The words that spill from the young woman’s mouth do not even seem to phase Mikah that much as she holds her own ground. The look on her face was emotionless for the most part except for the fact that Eiley knew that Mikah was upset with her.

;;MIKAH “Did you ever stop for one moment to think about how your absence has affected those around you?”

Eiley had noticed how Mikah had completely disregarded what she had said and Eiley boldly rolls her eyes in front of Mikah, not bothering to hide the motion.

••eiley•• “Why do I have to think about how my decisions affect other people? Nobody has ever thought about how their decisions affected me. So why do I have to be the one to think about how my decisions affect other people. I doubt you’ve ever thought about anybody other than yourself. Until recently, that is.”

The tension between the two was thick as Eiley hadn’t ever really stood up to Mikah before. The look on Mikah’s face, however, said it all as she looks at the twenty-one year old with a dirty look on her face that soon morphs into a smirk.

;;MIKAH “I get it, you’ve had a hard life, Eiley but things are different around here for you, now. And they have been for over a year now. You can’t walk in here like you haven’t been gone for months and act as if your absence hasn’t affected anybody. Things aren’t like they were in your childhood.”

Eiley was growing frustrated with the way that Mikah was avoiding some of the things that she had been saying to her and only picking and choosing things to respond to. She takes a moment to try to organize her thoughts before she responds to Mikah again. Eiley stands there for a few moments and Mikah just raises an eyebrow at her as she too waits for Eiley’s response. There could be sounds heard throughout the gym of people working in the ring and up above in the weight area of the gym.

;;MIKAH “Don’t worry, I have all the time to wait, Eiley.”

••eiley•• “Oh, what? You’re not chasing after your heathens that run around thinking they can control everything?”

The words had slipped out of her mouth before she could stop them. She knew that the kids were the one subject that Mikah would be defensive over and Eiley could see the mood within Mikah change.

;;MIKAH “Those heathens can run around this gym and do whatever they want, it is their second home. Kristopher and I want them to feel safe here. And don’t worry, every single person who steps into this gym through those front doors knows not to lay a hand on them or discipline them. And you will follow suit.”

Eiley just clenches her jaw for a moment, trying to keep calm and to try to gather a stronger hold on what she allowed to slip out. Eiley knew that she had to be calculated on how to talk with Mikah and she knew that Mikah had a quick reaction as well. She also knew that people liked to call Mikah dumb but she was well aware that Mikah was anything but dumb and that she just let people make up their own assumptions about her.

••eiley•• “I just think it’s unfair that I’m expected to think about how my own decisions will affect other people when it’s not the same the other way around. It’s kind of hypocritical, if you ask me.”

The smug look didn’t seem to leave Eiley’s face and Mikah just shakes her head. She stops for a moment, hearing a scream and Eiley listens as well. She watches Mikah’s face and then takes a moment to recollect her thoughts. Mikah soon turns her attention back to Eiley after determining that the scream was nothing to be really concerned about.

;;MIKAH “Well, I didn’t ask you if you thought it was hypocritical, Eiley. You should be taking some sort of accountability for your actions. You’re acting as if you’ve only been gone a couple weeks and not since the middle of January, which was nearly four months ago.”

Eiley lets out an exasperated noise as she looks around, trying not to throw her hands up in the air and just walk out of the gym. She knew that Mikah was pushing her and trying to get her to admit that she was in the wrong.

••eiley•• “I know how long I have been gone, Mikah. I know when I left to get some space and to think. I realize it has been a long time but I wasn’t even sure that I wanted to come back! And right now? I’m regretting that I even stepped through those doors. I just thought that maybe I could step back in that ring and try to work on whatever skills I need to improve on.”

Eiley watches Mikah for a moment and can see her switching gears and she was fully ready for a new sort of tactic to come from Mikah.

;;MIKAH “What about Oz? You didn’t think about him? Or coming back to him? Or for him? Hell, you haven’t even sent him a message and he’s also been gone for a while, looking for you. I had thought that if there was one person that you would have told your location to, it would have been him.”

A blank look crosses over Eiley’s face as Mikah mentions Oz. It wasn’t the tactic that Eiley thought that Mikah would use. She blinks a few times, trying to think of an answer for Mikah.

••eiley•• “I-don’t…I…it’s….I tried to, I just couldn’t bring myself to…text Oz.”

She had stumbled and stammered over her words. She curses at herself in her mind, hoping that it didn’t give anything away. She should have known that Oz was going to be brought up in the conversation; he was just as important to this gym as she was. She watches as a smirk crosses Mikah’s face and that cold, determined look is now in the Hall of Famer’s eyes; a look that many of Mikah’s opponents had seen before when she had figured something out in the ring.

;;MIKAH “You know, I knew that you would show back up. I told Kristopher that you’d be walking through those doors after I heard your name being called and then being paired with Mark Cross at Blaze of Glory for the Blast From the Past tournament.”

Eiley lets out a breath that she hadn’t known she had been holding as Mikah switches the subject from Oz.

••eiley•• “I…thought it would be nice to finally come back and try to win the tournament. I had hoped that Oz was going to be in the tournament so that we could be paired together randomly. But apparently, he wasn’t entered in the tournament.”

Mikah shakes her head at Eiley.

;;MIKAH “How can he enter a tournament when he’s been looking for you, Eiley? Did you not think about letting him know before you entered your name into the tournament? It might have encouraged him to enter his name.”

Eiley stumbles over a few things in her head, trying to think of something that would counter what Mikah had asked. She could see that Mikah was already feeling as if she had the upper hand and she probably did. Eiley could feel how she was slipping up and things weren’t making sense to Mikah and she could feel herself struggling to keep her head above the water.

••eiley•• “I didn’t know that Oz was looking for me…he n-never contacted me….”

A slightly sinister laugh spills from Mikah’s lips and it sort of surprises Eiley and she takes a step back. She didn’t like the calculated look that was now in Mikah’s eyes.

;;MIKAH “I just told you a few moments ago that he was looking for you, Eiley. This is the second time that I’ve mentioned it.”

The look on Eiley’s face falters just momentarily as she looks at Mikah, a bit surprised and she blinks a few times.

••eiley•• “But I didn’t…Oz didn’t…he didn’t get ahold of me. I would have told him that I was going to enter the tournament and come back.”

Mikah just shakes her head at Eiley and Eiley glances around her, feeling uneasy as her mentor looks annoyed with her.

;;MIKAH “I don’t believe that, Eiley. You know why?”

Eiley just shakes her head no and Mikah steps a little closer to her. Eiley sucks in a breath and holds it as she feels her heart beating fast inside her chest.

;;MIKAH “Because I know that Oz had tried texting and calling you a week or so after you left to get space. And I’m pretty sure or at least ninety-seven percent sure that he’s tried since then. So your little claim that Oz hasn’t tried to get in touch with you doesn’t sit well with me.”

Eiley chews on the inside of her cheek, sure that she was going to chew a piece of it off as she tries to calm her racing heart down. She tries her best to think about what to say next to Mikah but there wasn’t anything that she could think of that would appease Mikah.

••eiley•• “But how do you know it was me that he was texting? Maybe Oz just told you that he was trying to find me. Maybe he was lying to you to disappear too.”

Mikah laughs again, the noise sounding anything but joyous as Eiley feels that feeling of anxiety settling in. She takes another step backwards as she sees the sinister look in Mikah’s eyes.

;;MIKAH “While I’m not too friendly with one Oliver Zahn, I know that he was looking for you and texting you. The two of you? You don’t have many friends or people who you keep close. But you and Oz kept close to each other. So I know it was you that he went looking for when you never returned any of his text messages or phone calls. Don’t treat me like I’m stupid, Eiley, because I’m smarter than you.”

Eiley swallows hard as she feels the wrath that Mikah was easily portraying toward her. She glances around the gym, looking for anybody that she could hopefully use as an ally but she didn’t see anybody.

••eiley•• “Um…I…”

She stammers over her words but both of them are pulled away from their own train of thought as Kris walks into the gym, his phone in his hand and he stops when he sees Eiley and Mikah talking.

;;MIKAH “Exactly. You don’t have anything else to say to me. So I want you to get out of my gym, Eiley. And by the way….”

Mikah takes a step closer to Eiley and leans in, her lips next to Eiley’s ear.

;;MIKAH “You’ve never called Oz, Oz.”

The color drains from Eiley’s face as she realizes that she had slipped up and she just turns and walks out of the gym, not wanting to argue with Mikah anymore. She wasn’t sure where she was going to go, but she knew that she couldn’t stay there anymore. She looks up at the Hawaiian sun and takes a moment to think to herself before starting to walk in the direction of the highway. She pulls her phone out of her pocket to call for an Uber as she tries to think of what she wanted to do next. She needed to find somewhere to train and she knew now that Mikah’s gym was off limits and she couldn’t step foot in there again as she was now not welcome there any longer.

••eiley•• “Fuck.”



ON CAMERA
Location: Normandy, France at the landing beaches..
Date: May 3, 2024.
 


The scene opens up to the landing beaches  and gets a shot of the ocean before the camera moves to get a view of what has been set up on the beach. For the time being, the beach is pretty much empty but a few rows of chairs have been set up, facing the ocean. There wasn’t anybody sitting in the chairs, but there was a distinct aisle in between the sets. While there weren’t people in the chairs, there was something sitting in a few of the chairs.  A minute goes by before a figure can be seen in a black dress with a head drawn over their head, shielding their face. The figure is looking down at the sandy beach  as they walk the aisle toward the ocean. The person is holding something in her right hand but is sort of dragging it behind her, tracing a line in the sand with it. The camera zooms in closer to see that the object that the woman is dragging behind her is a sledgehammer. The woman stops at one of the chairs that holds an item on it and the camera zooms in to see a picture of Eiley’s pinned tweet printed out and put in a frame. The woman carefully grabs the sledgehammer and lifts both hands before slamming it down onto the frame, shattering the glass and destroying the frame.

“There comes a time when all good things must come to an end so that a new era can begin…”

The voice is low and almost disguised as the sentence was said slowly and the person was enunciating every world so that each word would not be mistaken for something else. She rips the hood from her head, a disgruntled and angry look on her face as it is revealed to be Eiley.

“And on Sunday? The road to that new era is going to begin for me…”

She sets the sledgehammer back down behind her and drags it to the next row, where a replica of the cruise ship that SCW hosts fans for a week on and then has a show on sits. She raises the sledgehammer up once more and brings it down on the mini replica of the ship and smashes it into many pieces.

“There will be no living in the past for me….”

She lets her gaze linger on the broken pieces of the mini replica of the cruise ship, the sledgehammer sitting on the ruins.

“The last time that you saw my face on a SCW screen was in January when I lost to Kayla Richards on an irrelevant Climax Control, who ironically is the Bombshell Champion right now.”

She takes a moment to let the words sink in for a moment. But the moment doesn’t last as she holds the camera’s gaze, appearing more confident in herself than she used to look. There was something different in her eyes that the camera couldn’t quite differentiate from anything else.

“The date of that Climax Control is irrelevant and that match is irrelevant in itself. But it is the last time that anybody has seen me step foot in a SCW ring or a wrestling ring in general. It is almost as if I disappeared off of the face of the Earth and it may have seemed like I was never going to be seen again.”

She pulls the hood back up to cover half of her face again, indicating the disappearance. She pushes it back down and fixes her blonde hair to keep it out of her face. She turns to face the ocean, her eyes scanning the horizon as she places the sledgehammer back down in the sand behind her and begins to drag it forward once more, making the line behind her longer. She stops at another chair to look down to see a replica of a tag team championship belt sitting on it.

“And this is what was important to me at that time; fighting for a championship belt that I only got half credit for….”

She takes a breath as she stares at the championship belt. The look of disgust is soon written all over her face and she raises the sledgehammer up and over her head before smashing it down on the fake replica of the belt. She does it a few more times, mangling the item into practically nothing.

“But that’s not going to be what happens anymore. Not this time, not this new era.”

She lets the sledgehammer fall down in the sand before she walks to the front of the rows of chairs and she chooses one to sit in. She is quiet for a moment, staring out at the ocean as she lets her words resonate for a moment.

“That’s why I entered the Blast From the Past tournament. I didn’t enter it for giggles or to see who I would be teamed up with. I entered the tournament for the right to choose to challenge for the Bombshell Championship once the winners of the tournament have been crowned.”

She leans back and crosses one leg over the other. She doesn’t seem rushed to talk again as she takes in the view of the ocean. There’s some sort of calm about her as she watches the waves crash onto the sandy beach.

“On June 6, 1944, the allied forces launched the largest amphibious invasion in the history of warfare. The Allied landings on the beaches of Normandy marked the start of a long and costly campaign to liberate north-west Europe from Nazi occupation. This is also known as D-Day or the beginning of the end of the Second World War in Europe.”

The little history lesson was not something that Eiley had planned, but she had come across it when she was doing her research on the landing beaches of Normandy, and she couldn’t help but use it to her advantage.

“That’s what it feels like returning to SCW for this tournament. Or at least, it feels like the beginning of the end of a lot of things.”

She bites her tongue, not wanting to overstep and completely miss on what she was supposed to be talking about. She wanted to leave it vague and that’s what she was going to do.

“In the past, I’ve been compared to Mikah and I’ve been called a miniature version of her and not my own person. I’ve also been given compliments from J2H on a few occasions that people hate to be reminded of. But there’s also a lot of things that I’ve done wrong that don’t seem to get as much credit for. But that’s not what the future is going to be for me.”

She shrugs.

“I am sure that there are a lot of expectations that people in SCW are holding for me and that there are a lot of assumptions that are being made about me, and that’s fine. Everybody can say or think about whatever they want about me because they will no matter what I do in the ring to prove them wrong or what I say in order to try to prove them wrong. I was always in the shadow of my mentor and people weren’t going to take me seriously when it came to wrestling. They never believed that I was going to be anything more than a rip off of what Mikah was in the ring. And I guess I sort of cracked under the pressure and walked away when it didn’t go my way.”

She shrugs her shoulders, letting the movement easily move through her body. She doesn’t move her eyes from the ocean.

“But that’s not today, that’s not how it’s going to be moving forward. I’m going to be just … Eiley. And prove that I can stand on my own two feet without the help of Mikah and her little gym.”

A flash of anger passes through Eiley’s eyes but as quick as it was there, it’s gone even quicker.

“And I’m going to start with using Melissa as an example this Sunday. And I’m sure Melissa is an alright person and I’m sure that a lot of people are picking her to win because it’s just me. The bombshell who clearly has had some fluke wins in her past. There’s no possible way that I can win on Sunday against Melissa. However, my last couple of losses? They were mistakes. Mistakes that shouldn’t have been made and I’ve been working on cleaning those mistakes up. But…”

She smirks a little to herself at the thought.

“This time, there will be no mistakes made when it comes to stepping into the ring against Melissa. I’ll be brutally honest with you.”

She leans forward just a little, placing her elbows on her knees.

“I don’t know a thing about Melissa or who she is or what she can do in the ring. I tried to do my homework and I got bored watching your old promos. But the one thing I can say about you is that you have been trained by decent people. Goth is a SCW Hall of Famer, so at least we have comparable backgrounds in training when it comes to who SCW deems to be important. And Whisper is well known throughout the wrestling community as well, so you’ve had training by people who have their own following and know what needs to be done in the ring.”

She doesn’t seem to hold much emotion on her face as she stares at the ocean for a moment before glancing at the camera, her lips turning up in a grin.

“But being trained by legends can only get you so far, Melissa. And I would know as I’ve had a small amount of success here in SCW. I’ve been one half of the Mixed Tag Team Champions, a division that Oz and I carried for a long time because the two irrelevants took over, who have completely ruined the division because I don’t even know the last time they defended them. But that’s not the point that I’m trying to make. I had success and I wanted to make my success be reliant on what Mikah had taught me in the ring, but she could only teach me so much. Which, is the same for you. Goth and Whisper can only teach you so much before you have to learn some things on your own.”

A smirk stretches across her face as she looks at the camera.

“Sunday is only two days away and only two days until I make my in-ring return for SCW. This time, however, I will not be teaming with Oz but instead Mark ‘The Dragon’ Cross, which is controversial in its own right. He has a reputation in this company and I’ve been told he can be a loud mouth and maybe a little annoying, but he does seem to know how to win this tournament, so for me? That’s a plus. Because I too want to win this tournament.”

The confidence in her eyes is different than before and maybe this time, it was something she actually believed.

“He has the experience in this tournament to know what it takes to win. And I don’t even care if I’m piggy backing off of his success because I know what I want. I also know that he’s perfectly capable of taking care of Aiden Reynolds and I won’t have to worry about some wannabe Finn Whelan wannabe.”

A small glint passes through her eyes before she refocuses and replaces the look with a blank look instead.

“I don’t care what I have to do to win on Sunday, either. I know that I am going to do whatever it takes to beat Melissa and be the better competitor in the ring. Melissa might think she is the better competitor and that she has the upper hand, but she’s going to be proven wrong on Sunday. I know I might be a little rusty in the ring, but I’m going to do everything in my power to ensure that I walk away with the win.”

She smirks again.

“Because this time around?”

She pauses for the dramatic effect.

“I’m not here for the Mixed Tag Team Championship, I’m here to fight for the right to challenge for the Bombshell Championship. Whoever that champion may be when it comes time.”

She shrugs one shoulder up as she looks at the camera.

“It’s nothing personal, it’s just business.”

She winks at the camera for a moment.

“And it’s going to start at the bottom, with Melissa. Hope everybody’s ready to watch it happen.”

She stands up and kicks the chair over with her foot.

“Because it’s going to happen whether you’re ready or not.”

Monday April 29th
Hastings, England

Last night was the opening week of the Blast From The Past tournament, as well as the first show in the Battleground Tour in Hastings. Bobbie and Peter Vaughn were successful in their first round match, which meant it was now time for the pair to move forward and focus on Artie and Kallie’s first round match. Unfortunately for Artie, it would not be an easy feat, because he would have to go up against a man returning to SCW…Konrad Raab.

They needed some sleep first, however. Which is what they got. A good night’s sleep. They would be travelling to France for the next stop of the tour, but they were staying in England one more day anyway. They were just making their way into the lobby, preparing to go do some sightseeing, when they stopped dead in their tracks. Well, Artie did first. Someone was walking into the hotel he was not expecting to see. His father!

“Dad??” He says, letting go of Bobbie’s hand and walking to his father. Bobbie was equally surprised to see her father in-law, but she was more interested in where Artie’s mother was. “What are you doing here?! Where’s Mom?” Artie looks around, expecting to see his mother, but she was most definitely not there.

His father scowls as he sets his suitcase down. “She’s not here.” His recent angry attitude had not changed, which Artie did not appreciate. Bobbie wanted to say something, but she remained quiet, knowing full well it may set him off.

“Uhh…okay.” Artie scratches his head. “But what are you doing here? How did you know we were staying in this hotel?”

His father shrugs. “I knew you’d give all the info to Ken and Barb, so I called Ken. He told me where you were staying. What are you not happy to see me or something? Because I can leave if that’s–”

“What?! No!” Artie raises his voice. He still didn’t understand why his father was being this way, but he got the impression he would be finding out soon enough. “I’m just surprised to see you is all. And without Mom. You two usually never travel alone so it just threw me off. Of course I don’t want you to leave.”

His father rolls his eyes, and actually glances to Bobbie. “Bobbie.” Just a simple greeting, but it was almost as if he wasn’t happy to see her. It hurt not only Bobbie, but Artie also. Before Bobbie could greet him back, Artie had had enough, and decided to address the elephant in the room.

“Dad, come on.” He says, and his father glares back at him. “You’ve been in a horrible mood for, what, months now? What gives? Bobbie has done nothing to you for you to treat her that way.” And it was true. Bobbie was always loving towards her in-laws. And she thought they had always loved her, too. There was never a problem until recently, and they needed to get to the bottom of it.

His father shakes his head, but his scowling suddenly fades. He looks almost apologetic but he remains focused on Artie, avoiding eye contact with Bobbie. Artie waits for an answer. Anything, really, to explain what has been going on. “I…I…Didn’t want to burden you with any of this. You’re all grown up and living your own life out in Las Vegas now. I..I can handle this…” He trails off and before they know it, he starts to sob.

Artie and Bobbie look at one another, concerned. Artie approaches his father, more worried than Bobbie at this point. He places a hand on his shoulder and tries to console him. “Whatever it is wouldn’t be a burden to me, Dad. You know that.” He needed to know. It was just like when Bobbie was dealing with her anxiety struggles, even though that was still an issue at times. “Please tell me what’s going on.”

Artie’s father takes in a few deep breaths, trying to calm himself. He looks at Bobbie and shakes his head. “Not here. Not in front of her.”

Again, Bobbie looks surprised. “Mr. Miller, if I did something…”

“Bobbie, I’ve got this.” Artie interrupts. “I’m sure it’s nothing you did. Let me just…talk to him in private for a few minutes.” He wouldn’t have said this if he wasn’t sure that it was something else upsetting his father. Bobbie had no choice but to agree, and Artie leads his father over to a secluded area of the hotel lobby so they can talk.

His father looks, making sure Bobbie can’t hear them. But he is also looking at how worried and upset his daughter in law is. “I…I shouldn’t have come all this way. This can wait until you guys get home.”

Artie shakes his head. “No.” He replies quickly, refusing to let this fester any longer. “You need to tell me. Now. Is Mom sick? Are you sick? What is it?”

His father shakes his head. “No. No. Neither of us is sick.” He replies, immediately putting that possibility to rest. But Artie still waits for an answer. His father stares at him, knowing there is no way out of this. He has to tell Artie the truth. And it’s a truth that just might shatter him. “What I’m about to tell you, it’s going to come as a huge shock, son.”

Artie nods and does his best to remain calm. “Okay. What’s going on?”

A long pause falls between them, as his father gathers his thoughts and words carefully. He then takes in a deep breath and finally spills the beans. “Your mother…she’s been having an affair.”

Artie’s jaw drops. He shakes his head, refusing to believe it. “What? No. That’s…you’re wrong. Mom would never…” He couldn’t accept what his father was telling him. On the other side of the lobby, Bobbie was anxiously wondering what was being said.

“It’s true, son.” His father replies, nodding his head sadly. “I didn’t want to believe it either, but it is.”

“How? With..with who?! How could she do this to you?! To our family!”  Artie sees Bobbie stepping towards them when she hears him raise his voice, but he holds up his hand, stopping her.

“She doesn’t know that I know.” His father says. “Just…don’t tell her. Or Bobbie until I figure out how to handle this.” Artie just stands there, speechless. How could he face his mother again after learning this? How could he not tell Bobbie the truth?

One thing is for sure. He was glad to have a wrestling match this weekend. Because he suddenly had the urge to punch something…or someone.

---

The camera opens up, focused on Artie’s awkward smiling face. He waves into the camera, ready to record his first message for the fans, his tag team partner and his opponents this week.

”So, uh, hi everyone. Welcome to my first actual promo for SCW! This feels super weird, because I never thought I’d even be doing this, but I went and made an honest mistake and now I’m paying the price. Or reaping the rewards if it all works out, right? I guess we’ll find out soon enough.”

“Be more positive sweetie! Don’t give them something to use against you!”

Bobbie’s voice is heard off camera. Artie turns his head, no doubt looking directly at her and scowls a bit.

“That’s what I’m doing! You be quiet and let me do this on my own. It’s my match anyway!”

Bobbie can be heard grumbling in response and Artie turns back to look into the camera. He lets out a sigh and briefly shakes his head.

“Anyway. Sorry about that. Bobbie is just trying to be a little too helpful, which I understand, but I’ve gotta take care of this myself, right? I know it’s not my usual job in SCW. I mean, I’m Bobbie’s manager slash valet. That’s about all I’ve been good for because I’m not exactly the wrestler type. I’m not an athletic type at all honestly. But the contracts for the Blast From The Past tournament were updated this year I guess. I didn’t look at them properly and next thing I know, I’m a participant in the tournament.”

He pauses for a moment and scratches his head. The tournament had been almost his sole focus over the last several weeks, when he wasn’t doing his managerial duties for Bobbie. He shrugs before he continues.

“Bobbie has been pretty upset with Christian Underwood for not allowing me out of this tournament, and I get it. I get both sides, really. It was an honest mistake, and Christian should understand that. But I also get that Christian is looking at this as a way to draw some attention to the tournament also. Because who wouldn’t watch when you have someone who has never wrestled competing and possibly making a fool of themselves, right? Get a few laughs at my expense just because.”

He closes his eyes and sighs again. Anyone else would be upset, but not Artie. He is literally shrugging it off as best as he can, trying to make the most of it.

“But as nervous as I am about all of this, a part of me is also…excited. Why would I be excited at the thought of getting my butt kicked and embarrassed? Well, it’s not really about that. I’m more excited at quite the opposite happening, because what if I prove everyone wrong? What if I go out there and actually hold my own pretty well? What if I actually fight and win this whole dang tournament? What if I actually get a World Heavyweight Championship shot after all of this?! Think about it!”

The excitement actually starts to increase in his voice the more he speaks. He briefly looks off camera to Bobbie, shushing her before she can even speak, before he looks back to the camera, smiling.

“I’m not saying it will happen, but we all know that it could! Anything is possible. I mean I could actually win the World Heavyweight Championship! ME! I know it’s a long shot, but I’m trying to think positive here. These last several weeks training have not been easy, and I’m trying to make the most of it. But I know that there are three other people in this match that I need to think about. One more than the other two, so I will save him for last.”

His expression suddenly falls a bit, knowing that the man he will have to face this week is a Raab. He sets any nervousness he has aside for the moment.

“So I’ve been teamed with Kallie Reznik for this tournament. I’m not completely familiar with her, because she’s fairly newer to SCW and Bobbie hasn’t even faced her…yet. But from what I have seen and heard, she’s pretty decent! Our team may not exactly have the odds in our favor for obvious reasons, but I think we stand a pretty good chance. As long as we work together. I mean, that is what this is about, right? A tag team tournament. Team work! It makes the dream work, people!”

Artie smiles and gives two thumbs up into the camera. Bobbie can be heard chuckling off camera, and Artie does his best to ignore her for now.

”As long as Kallie and I can work together and trust one another, we can get through this tournament. I may not know her personally yet, but I trust her and I am going to promise her that I will do everything that I can to help us win. I will do my part the best I can. I mean I’ve been training my butt off these last few weeks trying to get prepared, and I think it’s actually working! Look! A muscle!”

Artie pulls his arm up into the camera to make a muscle, and indeed a slight one does appear. Bobbie can be heard laughing again, and Artie shushes her yet again. Inside joke, perhaps.

”I don’t think Kallie has anything to worry about, either. I mean, this week she has to focus on Bea Barnhardt of all people. I don’t think it could get any easier for her than Bea Barnhardt. Am I right, Bobbie? It shouldn’t be that hard for Kallie going against Bea, right?!”

”Oh NOW you want me to say something? Nuh uh! You can handle this all by yourself, sweetie!”

Artie frowns, but he knows he deserved that one. He shrugs again and looks back into the camera.

”I’ll take that as a yes. Bobbie has faced Bea a couple times before and come out on the winning end, so I have complete faith that Kallie will handle Bea just fine and get the win for us…if I can’t anyway. So I guess that brings me to the guy I will actually be facing this week, huh? Someone who has a history in SCW, too. A guy named…Konrad Raab.”

Artie gulps nervously. He didn’t have to do research to be nervous just saying the name. Or the last name at least. The Raab’s were well known in the wrestling business, so naturally Artie knew what he was up against.

“I don’t need to go and watch any of Konrad’s last matches or anything, because I know full well what to expect from him. His last name says it all! The Raab’s are big guys. Tough opponents. Can be kinda vicious. Maybe I’m thinking about Lord Raab, or whatever his name was. The monster dude? I dunno. My point is the same. The Raabs are well known in the wrestling world, so the fact that I’m going up against one in the very first round has me a little…nervous. Who wouldn’t be, right?”

He scratches his head again, trying to think of what to say next before he takes in a deep breath.

“I guess this guy likes fire…a lot. He even earned his nickname for it. Kinda scary thought, but luckily if he tries any of that stuff in this match, he’d get his team disqualified, so I guess I shouldn’t be that nervous! I think that of anyone opponents in this tournament, I’m kinda glad we got Konrad’s team first. Just to get them out of the way and then it could get easier from there!”

”Again, not how it works, sweetie!”

Artie closes his eyes and avoids looking in Bobbie’s direction. He’s making a mental note that should he and Kallie advance this week, next time he would record his promo while Bobbie was somewhere else.

”You all know what I meant by that, so just ignore my nosey wife as she is trying to be helpful again. So anyway, yeah. I think getting Konrad Raab about of the way first is the way to do it. And I think I’m ready. If I can have training sessions with a guy like Fenris and still be sitting here today talking to all of you, I can handle Konrad Raab in the ring, right?!”

Bobbie can be heard laughing off camera. Artie just remains focused as best he can, though his nostrils flare a bit.

”Earlier I promised Kallie that I would do my part in this tournament, and I intend to stick to that promise. I know she is probably nervous to, having me for a partner and all, but I’ll do what needs to be done to get her to the World Bombshell Championship opportunity. Konrad may be bigger. He may be a lot more experienced and dangerous, but I think once I step into that ring, the adrenaline boost will work in my favor. I’m pretty quick, so that is working in my favor, too! I’ll find a weakness to use against him. I’ll take him down and prove to everyone that I can get the win for me and Kallie! I’ll show all of you!”

He tries to look as serious as he can into the camera, not wanting to give Konrad anything to use against him.

“Everyone is expecting me to be the joke of the entire tournament, and that’s fine. I get it. Laugh all you want, but when it’s all said and done? I’m gonna surprise all of you! I’m going to go out there, fight like hell and make it all the way to the finals where Kallie and I WILL win. And you know what?”

He leans in closer to the camera, smiling.

”You’re looking at a future World Heavyweight Champion! Uh-huh! I said it!”

“Not if Peter and I have anything to say about it!”

Artie’s eyes widen and he glares at Bobbie off camera. His hand reaches up to the top of the laptop.

“You’re supposed to be a supportive wife, ya know!”

Artie quickly closes the laptop, ending the recording, before their debate can be recorded any further.