Where on Earth has Tempest been? That is the question on many minds within the SCW Universe. Fans who fancy themselves the experts on the Bombshell division, as well as different promoters who work closely with Mark Ward and Christian Underwood in the booking of Climax Control in their respective cities that SCW is known for traveling through regularly. In fact, the amazonian Bombshell has not been seen since her match at Into the Void XI against Seleana Zdunich. In the climax of that extravagant event in Athens, Greece, the final show of the unfortunately named “Greece Lightning” Tour, Tempest did indeed fall to Seleana in what some have called something of an upset. True, Seleana had the experience factor going in her favor, but from a size and power standpoint, many fans and so-called experts expected the much larger Tempest to steamroll over the former World Champion.

An expectation that did not, in fact, come to pass.

Some misguided souls believed that perhaps Tempest was in such disbelief or ashamed at the rare singles loss that she was unable to handle it and simply left, walking out of Sin City Wrestling without a word to anyone. Nothing could have been further from the truth had anyone paid close enough attention to social media posts from Christian Underwood on Twitter…

May 15, 2022
Athens, Greece

Seleana had surprised not just the fans, but Tempest as well when she took advantage of their positioning and struck - bringing the 200 plus pound Bombshell from the corner in an Avalanche Asai DDT - coined by Seleana as the Kattöga. Realizing too late what was about to happen as she came down, Tempest attempted to shield her head from the impact by bracing herself with her forearm, but it was a rookie mistake because the moment her head struck the mat, with her weight working against her, she felt a sharp, intense pain in her forearm despite the fact the impact all but knocked her senseless, allowing Seleana to make the successful cover.

Afterwards, Tempest was alert enough to make her way back up the aisle and into the backstage area, shrugging off any offers of assistance from the staff or security. The moment the curtains parted at the “gorilla position”, she was met by SCW Co-Owner Christian Underwood. He beckoned her with a lilt of the head, stating simply, “Follow me.”

She huffed, a growing sense of annoyance and yes, embarrassment, flushed her features as she took what some have insultingly named he “walk of shame” - what anyone who just lost their match had to endure as they left the arena and walked past staff and peer alike, feeling the sense of a loss against them and in the eyes of those that watched. Whether those around her tried to hide the fact or not. All Tempest wished to do was simply get to the women's locker room, change and wait out the remainder of the evening and finally leave. Go home. And by “home”, she meant Hawaii, not Las Vegas. She just wanted to get away for a week or two and surround herself with her family. Something she had been unable to do for quite some time. But for now, she found herself at the first aid station in the backstage area where the medical personnel employed by SCW for the evening busied themselves, tending to minor wounds and injuries of the Superstars and Bombshells alike.

She kept still as the light in the physician’s hand shone in her amber colored eyes, before he turned it off. He then said, “Okay, that checks out. No change. Now, follow the pen with your eyes.”

And she reluctantly did as instructed, her eyes following as the physician moved the pen across her field of vision horizontally from left to right, then back again. Up, down, right, left, then in a wide circular pattern and not once did her eyes stray.

Satisfied, he set the pen down and asked, “Any dizziness or headaches?”

“No.” She shook her head.

“Any nausea or loss of balance when you were walking back here?”

Again, she answered in the negative as Christian himself chimed in and offered, “I was with her on the walk here and she was moving perfectly fine for a woman that just landed on her head from ten feet high.”

The physician whistled at what Christian had just described, shaking his head in faux disbelief. He turned back around to Tempest but spoke for Christian’s benefit as well, as he was her employer. He said, “I think it’s safe to rule out a concussion. Which I have to admit greatly surprises me considering what you just described. But I wouldn’t take any chances. I would still stay here in Athens for an extra day or two before hopping on a flight. Preferably with someone who can keep a close eye on you.”

Tempest scoffed at that notion as there was absolutely nobody present who would or could fill that role. Well - Austin, perhaps. But he had to get back to the States and return to his own family. He was probably as anxious as she was to leave, if not more so.

She shook her head at the notion, stating simply, “I’ll be fine.”

“You can use the extra day to visit the hospital and have your arm looked at.” Christian suddenly spoke up. Tempest looked at his with a frown on her face, but before she could object or play innocent, the boss man shook his head and said, “Don’t play dumb with me. You haven’t stopped holding your arm since you stepped through the curtains. And I was watching. I saw how you landed on it.”

Their eyes met and admittedly, Mark was quite correct when he stated that Christian was intimidated by this woman. But he was also very serious when it came to looking out for those that worked for him (at least to a degree) and he met her eyes with as much stubborn determination as her own.

She stated, “I’d rather be seen by my own doctor.”

“Your doctor is all the way in Hawaii and god knows when you’d be able to see them without doing yourself even more damage.” He shook his head, “This is not a democracy and it’s not up for debate. You’re going. Not after the show. Now.”

He stood there stoically as the physician waited for her to concede the point, until she finally looked away and exhaled in disgust.

Two days later…

The video call on her laptop was picked up on the other end of the call from her hotel room, and there was the face of Gabriel Stevens, one-half of the proprietors of the famed GO Gym, and the man that prepared her for the world of professional wrestling. Gabriel, of course, knew what had happened as he and Odette, along with their children, had watched the event live. Gabriel had sent immediate texts her way and she had assured him that she was fine and would be back in the states soon, but he had called her bluff right from the start until she admitted that she had to go get her arm checked out at the nearest Greek hospital. Gabriel gave her the condition that she contact him the moment she had any news.

Gabriel said from his end of the call, “So! What’s the official…?” It was then that he saw her arm in a sling and he flinched, “Oh, ouch.”

“Yeah.” Tempest sighed, an overwhelming sense of defeat in her being. “Ouch.”

“What’s the word?” He asked amicably and she answered, “Hairline fracture in one of the bones of my forearm. They said it would take six to eight weeks to fully heal.” 

“That’s not so bad.” Gabriel found himself admitting in an attempt to lessen the blow. He knew this woman well enough that she was figuratively kicking herself over causing her own injury over a simple, rookie mistake. “Feet and shoulders”. That was the better way to practice your landings inside of the ring, but the way Tempest was brought from out of the corner by Seleana? There was little to do to shield herself from that much impact. She tried to use her forearm to brace for the impact, but the error in judgment caused her to land her head on her arm, rather than use her arm against the canvas, thus causing the injury.

Gabriel continued, “It could have been a lot worse. I saw the match and the way you landed, hell Alleyene. I wouldn’t have been surprised had you snapped that bone in two.”

“Thanks.” She nodded. “Message received.”

“Oh don’t go getting all butt hurt.” Gabriel corrected her before she could properly build a full head of steam. “”I’m just saying that things aren’t as bad as you’re thinking. Two months is not that long.”

“Long enough for them to forget anything that I’ve accomplished.” She pointed out, then shrugged to concede. “Not that I’ve been given much opportunity outside of my team with Austin.”

“We can talk about when you hit Vegas.” Gabriel promised. But tempest shook her head and returned her eyes to the screen, and thus, to him. “Hawaii.”

“Excuse me?”

She said, “I’m not coming back to Las Vegas. At least not straight away. Maybe long enough to grab a few things but I’m going to spend the majority of the recovery time back home.”

It took a moment for the words to register in Gabriel’s mind, and not that she was giving up or acting morose, but something else altogether had caused this frame of mind to take charge. He suddenly chuckled and nodded, saying, “Your mom?” And saying it as more of a statement than a question.

“Yeah.” She sighed. “The woman never would have forgiven me if I hadn’t called her first with the news from the examination. Just got off the call right before I contacted you. I was going to come to Vegas like you said but then she…” Tempest frowned at Gabriel who was attempting to smother his smile and her eyes narrowed. “You’re enjoying this, aren’t you!?” She accused him.

To which, Gabriel held up a thumb and forefinger very close together. “A little bit.” He admitted, then flat out laughed. “You can hardly blame me! The woman is twice your age and a third your size!”

“Hell, even my brothers know well enough not to cross her.” Tempest found herself admitting at the expense of herself as well as that of her siblings. She tilted her head to the side and yes, a soft smile curved the corners of her unpainted lips. “We learned that lesson early.”

Gabriel chuckled as he nodded in understanding. He said, “I can appreciate your mom wanting you to be home while you recover. And you wanting to. Just swing by the Gym first when you stop in Vegas for your things.”

“Talk business?”

“That…” Gabriel smiled. “And Lucas and his sister have been working all day on their get well cards for you.”

Tempest stared hard at the man on the opposing side of the screen for a fair few moments before she snorted back a laugh and shook her head. The smile was evident enough on her face as she said, “Fine.” trying to play it off but deep down, this “monster of a woman” had a notable soft spot for children; the Stevens children chief amongst them.

---

Honolulu, Hawaii
Two months ago

It was their first house together, one that her husband Malulani and she had purchased jointly from his funds as a soldier and hers through her bounty hunting business. It had three bedrooms, evidence that they had planned to expand past just themselves and Malulani’s daughter Anela, and maybe, just maybe, a child of their own some day. Unfortunately, fate was not on their side for any such dreams, and with her husband’s death and Anela being taken from her by her grieving and bitter mother-in-law, Tempest had nevertheless kept the house in her name, refusing to sell despite the many offers. It was, after all, prime real estate here on the island of Honolulu. Up on a secluded hill and surrounded by trees of many kinds; among them 'Ōhi'a lehua, Eucalyptus and Jacaranda, along with so much local plant life. But it was the seclusion that sold her on the house, and was the deciding factor in her keeping it. There was but one path on the land that led to the city and the surrounding, nearby ocean. There were other homes nearby, but they were few and far between.

And to those in the real estate game who came house hunting? The house, and the land it was on, was her own. She owed nothing. No payments, no mortgage. It belonged to her and more than one realtor was sent scurrying with tail between legs when approaching her to sell for the fact alone.

From the outside, it looked humble and for the woman who had come to be known as Tempest? That was quite alright because she wasn’t one of those women who had to fill every nook and cranny of her home with meaningless plants and trinkets to fill up space. It was a large home, but with simple tastes.

And it was where she had just returned following a rather full day, complete with the physical that brought along with it the good news that she had been cleared officially by her doctor to return to competition if she so desired. Her doting mother was understandably upset at the idea of her only daughter leaving Hawaii once again, and if she was going to be perfectly honest? Tempest herself was as of yet, undecided where her next path would lead.

Still, she had her doctor fax her release papers to the SCW offices in Las Vegas and she phoned Gabriel and Odette Stevens to tell them the good news. Their glowing, positive energy was slowly eroding away any doubts she had laying deep in the recesses of her mind. She was interested in a return to the six-sided ring, but as she explained to the Stevens and she would repeat to Mark Ward or Christian Underwood, whichever of the two bosses who would be contacting her the next day, she just needed a little more time with her family. She had spent the early evening with her parents and siblings, along with their respective spouses and children in a big family dinner that her mom went completely overboard in preparations. Now that night had fallen and the air had cooled off, with winds blowing through the trees that surrounded her home, all she wanted to do was grab a beer, maybe watch a late movie and then finally go to bed.

But again – fate.

She felt the tell-tale vibrations on her phone that told her she had a call coming in. A call, at this hour? And from who..? She picked her phone up from her kitchen counter and saw that it was actually a video call request, and from Austin – of all people. Wondering what he could want at this hour, she quickly hit the green button to accept the call request, to which his face appeared on the screen opposite her own.

“What’s up Buttercup…?” She started to ask in her usual, playful greeting to the man that had gone from being tag team partner to acquaintance to genuine best friend, but her words quickly halted at what she saw before her eyes. Austin looked – absolutely pitiful. Haggard, to be more specific. His eyes were sunken with bags under them, a clear testament that the man had not been sleeping. His complexion appeared almost like wax, as if he had been violently sick. But it was his eyes… haunted. Brimmed red and bloodshot as if he had been crying buckets of tears and the streaks down his face testified that he had indeed, and he was not finished yet.

“Austin…?” She spoke with much concern in her voice. “What is it? What’s wrong?”

Austin could only close his eyes and draw in a shaky, choked breath before he could bring himself to find his voice and answer her.

TBC…

---

“Well… when the higher ups in SCW first contacted me to tell me my first match back was set, this was not what I was expecting. I thought for certain I’d be stuck in yet another meaningless match that served as much purpose as your average card filler match, but this? A six woman Battle Royal for the Internet Championship that Roxi Johnson just recently gave up? And in India, no less? I guess the best way to sum up how I feel about this little turnabout is… Roxi’s loss is about to become my gain.”

“I think I’ve done fairly well for myself here since I started laying waste to all the Barbie dolls that seem to mass produce in the Bombshell division. The fact that I’ve only been pinned twice is evidence enough, but let’s not ignore the fact that at one point, Austin James Mercer and I were so feared as Mixed Tag Team Champions that Mark and Christian had extreme difficulty finding us challengers that wanted to risk their physical well being by getting into the ring against us! What does it say about your reputation when championship gold isn’t enough of a lure to compete against us, and they had to resort to just throwing teams together at random so the championships could at least get defended if but semi-regularly. But still, there is always the lure, always the bite. The desire to prove yourself capable and as much as I look back on my time with Austin and as much fun as I had with the man as a friend and a tag team partner, yeah. I admit it. I wouldn’t exactly object to proving myself capable of winning a championship of my own, on my own. And here that opportunity has practically been dropped right into my lap!”

“The Internet Championship. Some have said that the Internet title is the second most prestigious singles title in SCW, while others state that this distinction belongs to the Roulette title because of its long and distinguished lineage. I don’t know. I’m not one of those arguing over the point. I just know there is a championship being dangled in front of me, and I apparently have to go through five other Bombshells in order to claim it for my own. Well, hell! That suits me just fine!”

“The fact that I’m going to be surrounded by five other women isn’t as concerning as you might like to want me to believe, and make no mistake about it! I will be surrounded! There is no way those women are going to target anyone BUT me because they know from a physical standpoint, I’m the threat! I’m the one they have to get out over that top rope and onto the floor if any of them have any hope of walking away with that championship. And more power to them for even considering trying because those hopes and dreams are going to be slammed to the floor just as easily and just as assuredly as their own bodies will be! Four of those women, I know. One, I’ve never had the pleasure and I’m not exactly broken up over the fact.”

“That woman, of course, is Keira Fisher-Johnson. The picture personification of a Barbie Doll wrestler. The woman who practically uses her body to sell herself to fans and promoters. I mean, all you have to do is go on Twitter every damn week and you’ll see her posting as many pictures of herself in as little as legally possible! And she does it for one reason; to draw eyes on her. Classic narcissist, am I right? She of course plays it off but anyone with two eyes can see the woman is completely full of herself and as much as her eyes are all over her wife, those eyes stray and unapologetically so. I’m sorry but if my spouse was on social media and posting all these sexual innuendo remarks towards others, I wouldn’t just sit back and laugh like it was nothing! All the “And Roxi is the only one for me” tweets week in and week out don’t erase the fact the woman is a psychological cheat.”

“In this business, Keira is probably second only to Crystal Zdunich when it comes to selfish ambitions. How many times has she called Roxi and herself the greatest tag team of all time when there has been clear evidence in the past that other teams have had just as good if not better records? How many times has Keira whined about the Internet title when she neglects to mention the fact that she never held the title that I did? The Mixed Tag? Oh that’s right! That’s because she’s too good to team with anyone BUT Roxi! Despite the fact that Despayre hinted more than once about teaming with either half of Team Hero, only to get snubbed! But every time, every single time, Keira makes an appearance, it’s the same song and dance. Woe be to Keira! ‘Am I not good enough? Maybe I should just hang up my boots?’ Wash, rinse and repeat! Well Keira, honey? Keep those thoughts fresh because you are the first chick I plan to toss out of that ring!”

“Now Kayla Richards, I can’t deny the fact I don’t know too much about because of my own time away, but given how she debuted and then vanished for weeks on end, one could be forgiven for having forgotten she was even still signed to SCW. That is either a mark against the bookers or her, but I do know she’s come back strong and I know enough to know she comes from pretty damn strong stock where Wolfslair is concerned. Proud as I am of the GO Gym legacy and the fact I think them the best, I’m not one to deny facts and anyone who comes from Wolfslair is someone worthy of respect. But respect doesn’t get you anywhere when it’s every woman for herself so, Kayla? Sorry about it but if I have to go through you, and I do, then I will.”

“Bea Barnhart is one chick I have direct experience against, because Bea and her hubby are the team that Austin and I blew through to win the Mixed Tag titles. When I heard you were in this match, Bea, I had to ask myself two questions. One … why is she in this match when she’s done less than nothing to deserve being in it? Hell! I’ve been gone for two m months and even I did more in that time frame than she has to warrant being entered into this Battle Royal! The other question I wonder if she remembers much from our last time in the ring together? Or, outside of the ring I suppose would be more accurate. The time I caught you and threw you right into the barricade? Remember, Bea? Good times! I suppose I was curious if that blow into the barricade rattled enough around in that head of yours to make you forget just why you should be doing everything possible in order to avoid me. Well, that won’t be much of an option because truth be told, I just don’t see you lasting that long in this match. If I don’t throw you out myself, I could easily see every other woman in this match teaming up just to dump your bony butt out of the ring. They’d do it for the pleasure of it. I’d do it because of a little thing called loyalty. Trust me, I haven’t forgotten even if everyone else has. Tell all the lies that you want to in order to put your halo back. I don’t care. I just know that you helped blind Fenris, the man that went to the same Gym as I did. And for that… bye bye!”

“Now… Seleana. The one chick out of all the others that has a win over me. Props for that girl, I won’t lie and say that you cheated or got lucky. You are what I would call the Anti-Barbie. Girl is the walking talking picture of a Barbie doll, but doesn’t fight like one. I will say that I was as much at fault for my loss as you were for beating me. So let;s just think of this as something of a return match, shall we? A way that I might get into that ring with you and correct a past mistake. I’m not going to be like any of these other women who look at you and play down the things that you’ve done like it was nothing. Most of them haven’t accomplished half as much as you have and to me, that’s just being bitter. I’m not bitter, Seleana. I’m ANGRY. It was the match against you that put me out for the past eight weeks, so you are just going to have to come to an understanding why I am going to steamroll right over you and take a great amount of pleasure in doing so!”

“Which brings us to the last woman I have to get inside of the ring with, and maybe the one that's going to be the hardest to find myself in there against. For sentimentality if not from a physical standpoint. Ariana Angelos, my own GO Gym grad! Well Ariana, I think we can both say that this is … awkward. Everyone out there, perhaps yourself included, is going to expect the two of us to go into this match with the sole purpose of working  together until it’s just the two of us and then we can focus on one of us eliminating the other. Well, I have to admit that it’s a nice plan, but not without its faults. I mean, it IS every woman for herself so if my back is turned, could I trust you not to surprise me and TRY to get me out over that top rope? Or can you say the same that when every other woman in this match jumps me in a hang up attempt, you won’t join in rather than pull them off of me to help? Ari girl, there are three things between the two of us. Loyalty and respect chief amongst them. You’re not Krystal Wolfe. Now HER I wouldn’t think twice about grabbing and tossing her out on her happy little ass, but you? You’ve had it pretty rough since you got up here in SCW from SCU. But you don’t give up. You fight on so like I said… loyalty and respect. But… that third thing? The Internet Championship? That third thing is the one thing that is going to throw the first two out the window because only one of us is going to win this one…and sister? It’s not going to be you.”

“SCW knew what it was doing when they were booking this match, because it would take five women to get between me and my first singles championship and even then? It’s not going to be enough!”

Galaxy Hotel Iraklio

She had arrived in the evening at her hotel, and was immediately captivated by her surroundings. Tempest had heard from the grapevine about this wrestler staying at this five star resort or that wrestler boasting about he or she staying at some ocean side hotel that cost an excess of over $300 a night. And Tempest? She would have been comfortable in a Motel 6 but seeing as how they were not exactly available in the historical Greek city of Crete, she was quite happy right there. The Crete night sky only served to better highlight the all-white structure of the five story building.

The pool was the space that had captured her particular interest, surrounded by Greek palm trees native to Crete and draped in soft, white lights that carried a basking glow to the waters of the pool and those that chose to submerge themselves within. Tempest had, admittedly, never been one for the use of a public pool. Given the nature of people, in her own words to Austin James Mercer, “Why not just pee directly on me?” But it was Austin’s own tenacity and insistence to get her to ‘loosen up’ on the 2021 Summer XXXTreme cruise that gave her more of an open mind – somewhat – and she could see herself wading into this pool’s waters for a bit of relaxation. Or at the very least, lounge close by on one of the many offered deck chairs.

When she did relax in a pool, her preferred time to do so was after the sun had already begun to set and the stars were coming out. By then, the sun had warmed the waters but there was more to it than something so simple. There was just something peaceful and calming about swimming at night beneath the stars. It was almost primal by nature, and that was something someone such as she needed.

Of course, the ironic part of this location is that it was not where Tempest was originally scheduled to stay during her foray into Crete at all. She had originally been scheduled to stay at one of the other hotels where the vast majority of both SCW as well as SCU stars had been booked. The Blue Palace, Amirandes Grecotel - among others, were the choice stays for the men and women, staff and wrestler alike, and despite the lap of luxury of all spots being offered on hand, Tempest had contacted Gabriel Stevens to specifically ask him whether or not he could pull a string or two and allow her to stay somewhere else. Of course, Gabriel and Odette both refused to let her stay in some dingy one star hotel in some dangerous back alley. They wanted only the best for their students when they were out and about, traveling while putting their bodies at risk for the entertainment of the fans. But they understood her reasons when they had asked her ‘why,’ and so they did look up other options for her and the Galaxy Hotel Iraklio was just the thing.

They could not guarantee that nobody else from either promotion wouldn’t be staying here. It was, after all, quite comfortable and not without its own luxurious surroundings. They were just fairly certain that a certain someone else was not staying there. Tempest simply wanted to forget what had happened between Mercer and herself and relax. And so that was what she proceeded to do – from within the confines of her room.

Oh please don’t get us wrong! The rooms at the Galaxy Hotel were as swanky (Tempest’s words, not ours) as she had ever seen. A traditional white room with beige carpet and modern furnishings, she felt hard pressed to find any difference between this room and any other that she had stayed at during her tenure as a wrestler. A full bath, queen-sized bed, bedside television – hell! There was even a laptop available for use on the desk opposite the bed!

Old habits tend to die hard, however. You know the saying, and when you are thinking of Tempest, the words are anything but hollow. They rang true as from the moment she checked in, with exceptions to venturing out for her usual intense workouts or some pre-arranged meet up with the fans courtesy of SCW, Tempest spent the vast majority of time in her room. Even when meals were concerned, she had all the options of local restaurants and even dining experiences right in the hotel itself. But, she was what some might see as a creature of habit and she shut herself off from the world around her and practically everyone else. That in itself was a positive influence that Austin James Mercer had over her, and some of those closest to her both acknowledged and wished would return; the fact that he was solely responsible for dragging her out of both her room while on tour, as well as getting her (somewhat) out of her shell.

But once they had their falling out over a misunderstanding, it was back to square one and the walls that Austin had helped tear down from around her went right back up.

Nalani: Dear, I’m just saying that it’s not healthy.

Indeed, the one person aside from the Stevens who might speak their viewpoint toward Tempest without (much) fear of reprisal was her own mother, Nalani. She might have snapped at her father despite the adulation she felt toward the leading man in her life, and her brothers she DEFINITELY would have told them where to stick their opinions, but her own mom? There was something definitely sacred in the relationship between a mother and her only daughter.

Tempest: Mother, I’m perfectly healthy…

Nalani: Mentally, I mean.

Tempest: That too – if you don’t pay attention to the people I train with at the gym.

Nalani: It’s just not good for you, either physically or mentally, to steal yourself up behind closed doors like this. You should get out into the fresh air and sunshine. I hear the weather in Greece is lovely right now.

Tempest shrugged, trying to act indifferent even though she would be hard pressed to deny the truth; that the weather in Greece since the tour had first begun was nigh on perfect with clear, blue skies and nary a cloud. It was something she heard Ben Jordan refer to as ‘beer garden weather’, whatever that meant.

Tempest: It’s alright.

Nalani: Honey, you are in one of the most beautiful countries in the world! There are people dying to visit some of the places you’ve been. Your father and I both said we’d love to see Greece some day and here you are, staying at your hotel rather than venturing out and taking advantage of where you are.

Tempest: Mother, I know how lucky I am. But you know me; I’ve never been the sort to just venture out like a common tourist and play looky loo.

Nalani: Maybe not before, but you have been. Or at least, you started to go out more with Austin.

At the mere mention of his name, Tempest frowned and looked away from her phone but the reaction did not go unnoticed by her mother. True she was a woman in her middle years but Nalani still had the sharp wits of a woman half her age.

Nalani: What happened there? Aren’t you two friends any more?

Tempest: It’s complicated, Mother.

Nalani: Oh ‘complicated’ my butt! This isn’t a Facebook relationship status, it’s real life. It’s…

But whatever else she was going to say, her daughter drowned her out with the simple truth.

Tempest: He thinks I have a thing for him, Mother! He thinks…

She closed her eyes and shook her head before resuming.

Tempest: He thinks I’m in love with him.

Nalani: Oh… and are you?

Tempest turned the phone directly to face her so that her mother could get an even better angled view of her wide-eyed expression as she said with a hint of incredulous heat…

Tempest: NO!

Nalani: Alright, alright!

She teased despite the tense situation, playfully holding her hands up in a display of mock surrender.

Nalani: I had to ask. He ‘is’ a rather handsome young man.

Tempest: He must think so if he thinks a woman only wants to hang out with him because she’s hot for teacher.

She shook her head again and held up a hand, trying to diffuse her own mental state.

Tempest: It’s just that … much as I hate to admit it… he was the friend I think I needed after I lost Malulani. And now because of what he said – what he thinks, all that is gone.

Nalani: Why does it have to be gone?

Tempest: Because it would just be awkward, Mother! He thinks the only reason I’ve been hanging out with him is because I have feelings for him!

Nalani: Where on earth did he get these ideas from if not from you?

Tempest: Apparently from his wife and sister. I guess both of them told him the same thing. I just don’t get it. His wife seemed nice enough. She never seemed to mind when he’d invite me to tag along when his family would do something on tour. In fact, she’d almost insist as much as he did. She never even minded when we’d hang out when she had to stay at home! I don’t know if I could be that open minded if I thought another woman had feelings for my husband…

Nalani: If you thought another woman was in love with your husband, you’d stuff her down the garbage disposal.

Tempest could not help but smile and scoff back a laugh at not just her mom’s quick wit, but also her ability to assess her daughter’s personality so fluidly.

Nalani: Anyway, it doesn’t sound like this was Austin’s fault at all.

Tempest frowned.

Tempest: What do you mean?

Nalani: It all sounds like some big misunderstanding. His wife and sister misunderstood the signs and told him the way it looked from their eyes.

Tempest: Unless they did it to put on face and end our friendship…

Nalani sighed and rolled her eyes.

Nalani: That’s my girl! Always thinking the worst of people!

Tempest smirked.

Tempest: I tend to go with my strengths.

Nalani: Dear, don’t blame Austin for a misunderstanding. Him believing his wife and sister doesn’t make him arrogant. People on the outside tend to see things differently in a given situation than from those on the inside. He probably just thought they saw something that he didn’t. It’s not his fault.

Tempest took in a deep breath through her nose and exhaled the same way, looking to her mother from the screen of her phone.

Nalani: Just think about talking to him?

Tempest: Maybe. I have to go.

Nalani smiled. Stubborn. Her daughter was so stubborn but she had a good feeling this time. A good friendship was precious and rare, and she didn't want to see the one her daughter had formed with Austin to go to waste over something so silly.

Nalani: Of course. Love you!

Tempest: Love you too.

Her mother blew a kiss to the screen from her end and thus the call was ended. Tempest turned her phone off and set it on the surface of the desk she had been seated at, then ran a finger along her chin. Hawaii was thirteen hours behind Greece, she could not believe her mother stayed up that late just to have a chat with her. Well she could believe it, but seriously! It was noon here in Greece, which meant it was after eleven PM back in Hawaii. And her mother usually went to bed around nine.

Oh well, Tempest slowly pushed herself up to her feet and walked over to the bedside stand where she picked up a small menu that was provided for the hotel stay, and then the phone receiver. She gave a look at the menu to see what she might order from room service for her lunch when something gave her a brief pause.

She looked around at her room, and perhaps not for the very first time, she realized just how empty it was. Her clothes had been hung up by the maids and porter. Her casual belongings such as her books and such were carefully laid out on the desk across from the bed, a stack on each side of the laptop. Other than that, there was nothing.

Nobody else.

And here she was, preparing to order room service and find something in English that she could watch on TV to pass the time until she went for her afternoon workout. Her eyes roamed all around the spacious room until she set the menu back down, and hung the phone up.

Tempest: … Shit….

---

Tour Diktaion (Psychro) Cave


Don't ask her why this place out of all others that she could have gone for. There was so much that Crete offered to tourists and locals alike! It was why it was one of the premiere cities in the nation to visit, second only to Athens herself. There was of course the Chanian lighthouse and Venetian harbor. The Palace of Knossos. The Samaria Gorge. The Heraklion Archaeological Museum. The Preveli Monastery. And the beaches. Oh those glorious Crete beaches known from across the world! But no. It was here in one of Crete’s greatest natural wonders that Tempest chose to yield to her mother’s loving pressure and spend a part of her day, outside of her hotel room. Not exactly in the fresh air per se, but beggars can’t be choosers.

Mothers know best and all that!

What drew Tempest to this particular tourist attraction and natural wonder had much to do with the stories of Greek myths she and her brothers had heard as children and studied in school. According to Greek myth, it was right here in the Diktaion Cave where Zeus, king of the Greek Gods, was brought forth into the world to war against the Titans.

But this was more than just Greek myths and tall tales. The Diktaion Cave was known to be one of the very best of the over 4,500 caves and sinkholes found all throughout Crete. Tempest was not alone by any means on this guided tour. There were many tourists along for the proverbial ride, and she believed she even saw an SCW star or two in the crowd, as they were guided on a walk down deep into the earth. She had counted five antechambers that she and the rest had passed through until ultimately they reached the very bottom of the cave, where a glass-calm lake was, surrounded by stalactites and stalagmites.

The tour guide’s voice caught her attention and she looked up at one stalactite in particular, referred to by the guide as the “Mantle of Zeus”. It hung over the lake like a chandelier and which shape resembled that of a cloak. Her amber eyes then gazed at the soft, calm lake itself and across it, to the very back. And therein laid a small chamber, where legend said that the father of the Greek Gods was born.

She could not help but smile in gratitude for her mother’s sage advice. She was right. It did her good to get out of her hotel. It did her good to experience something of the world such as this. But the question in the back of her mind remained…

Was she right about something else?

---

“An accident?”

Tempest sat on the edge of the ring, her eyes burning straight ahead and into the lens of the camera in front of her.

“That’s what you called it, is that right… Markus, was it? Candy’s husband? The same man who was fool enough to get involved in his wife’s business once before and ended up with Fenris’s foot shoved halfway up his ass as a souvenir? Well, I suppose that this is all well and good, Markus. You had your say. You gave me your opinion on the situation between your little wife and myself, and I have to say…”

She shrugged her shoulders.

“I can’t say that I could care less what your opinion on what went down Sunday is, because that would imply that I cared – at all. Look, Markus. Take a look at this…”

Tempest took a forefinger toward the rim of her Tshirt’s neckline and pulled it down just enough so that the still-visible burn mark could be seen for the camera.

“See that? That coffee your wife spilled on me was over 160 degrees! The paramedics who TRIED to look at it thought it might have been a third degree burn, and could have been worse had the majority of the spill NOT been on my shirt instead of bare skin! But that’s okay because, as you said… It was an ‘accident’.”

She spoke with air quotes.

“Funny thing, I’ve had worse, Markus. A lot worse, Candy. In my former profession alone? I’ve been shot, stabbed, so really. What’s a little bit of a coffee burn? I get it. I actually do. You said that it was an accident and accidents happen, but what I did to her after she caused me to get burned was no accident. It was stress relief. You see, this is where I ignore you Markus and my words are more directed toward your wife. Candy. C’mere girl.”

She beckoned the camera, and in a sense, Candy herself, to come closer.

“C’mere. There’s something I want to explain to you Candy, and I’ll keep it simple so that little childlike mind of yours can process it like the big girl we all know you hope to grow up and become some day. For you, what happened backstage and what is going to happen in just a matter of days? It’s all a simple matter of ‘wrong place, wrong time’! Things have not been so rosy and cheerful for me these past few weeks. Possibly even longer. For reasons both personal and professional, things have slowly just been going downhill for me, and that had put me in…”

She tilted her head to the side ever so slightly and cast a sidelong glance upward.

“... Not so great of a mood. Add on top of that a lack of bookings on an otherwise once-in-a-lifetime tour and… well honey you just really should have been paying closer attention to your surroundings and being more careful because otherwise… none of this really would have happened! So if you think about it… what happened last Sunday? What is going to happen this coming Sunday? Really it’s…”

She pointed a forefinger straight at the camera.

“... Entirely your fault! And it almost - ALMOST - makes me feel for you girl because I look at you, and on one hand, I wonder what the hell is wrong with you! But on the other hand, I wonder what the hell actually happened to you! I’m not exactly what you might call a ‘student of the game,’ but I know some history of SCW and especially that of the people I have to get inside of the ring with. I know that beneath that stereotypical sitcom ditz exterior, there lies a credible competitor somewhere buried underneath – apparently far beneath. You were a former Roulette Champion and you actually held onto that belt for a respectable amount of time. But after that…”

She frowned and shook her head in disbelief.

“Girl, I don’t know what the hell happened to turn you into… whatever it is that you are right now, but life has some harsh lessons. And one of those lessons is going to be taught when you and I end up in the same ring together. Alone, and without that hubby of yours to intervene.”

Tempest slowly stood up and leaned over into the camera, her hand extended forward and her palm unclasped to reveal a hard candy in the palm of her hand.

“It’s time to grow up.”

That being said, she clenched her fist tightly and SQUEEZED… until a moment later she unclenched her hand and there in the palm of her hand, was the very same piece of candy - now broken into three separate pieces.

Las Vegas, Nevada -
Thanksgiving Day

“I wish you would have been able to come to Hawaii.”

Tempest knew that this would be said the moment her phone rang and she saw who was on the other end of the line. Her family had asked her as far back as October if she’d be able to make it to Hawaii for Thanksgiving. She had initially told them it was up in the air, because she did not yet know that far in advance whether Sin City Wrestling would come calling and she’d have to work. Most of the family had been understanding - all except for her mother. Nalani was a master manipulator, even when she denied being or doing so. She had her ways to bring up little topics and work them until her children discovered themselves doing whatever it was that she wanted or needed. And she did not do it in a cunning way. Her children absolutely adored her and every one of them had little to no qualms at doing whatever they could to make her happy after everything she and their father had done for them.

This -- just was not one of those times.

Tempest: I know, but I told you I have to be in California for work this weekend. It’s three thousand miles there and three thousand back. That’s a hell of a jaunt for one day, and Austin is depending on me to be at my best. We’re defending against the same people we beat in New York.

Nalani: Why are they getting another match for your championships?

Tempest: I guess they impressed the bosses enough they wanted to see a return match? I don’t know. I just know they point me at whoever Austin and I have to beat, and we go and beat them.

Even though they were not on a video messenger for this call, she could just tell her mom was smiling. Whether out of pride or simply indulging her only daughter’s level of confidence, she didn’t know.

Nalani: And there was nowhere you could go there in Nevada?

Tempest: I had a couple of offers, I just didn’t … accept. Gabriel and Odette aren’t American but they do spend the day at a friend’s home and they invited me along. Gabriel said he understood when I told him I’d rather just stay home and watch the game and order a pizza…

Nalani: Pizza!? For Thanksgiving…?

Tempest smirked, a chuckle escaped her. Leave it to her Mom to be affronted by her choice of holiday cuisine, of all things. That would be as much a sin to Nalani Mahoe as simply being left on her own. She continued…

Tempest: … But something tells me he didn’t. Or didn’t like it, at least. But he respected it enough not to press. Then Austin and his friends and family are holding a dinner here in town and Austin asked me to come, but I just feel like I’d be intruding so I didn’t…

She sighed, shaking her head. She never did send Austin that RSVP, she simply hoped he would forget about inviting her and leave it at that. (Oh how she should have known better!) And if she was to be entirely honest? She felt terribly guilty for ‘ghosting’ Austin after he had proved his friendship time and again. He deserved better. She simply didn’t feel like she was good enough to give that to -- anyone.

Nalani: But why? That Austin seems like such a sweet young man. You should have gone! That’s what I don’t understand, dear. Nobody should be alone on the holidays…

Tempest closed her eyes as she listened to her mother’s words, but whereas normally she would pay strong attention to whatever her mom said out of sheer respect, this was an instance where words were just that, and they fell upon deaf ears, you might say. Her mom had always been of the mind that family was of the utmost importance, and possibly more so than that? That family should always be together during holidays and special occasions.

Tempest: Well, Momma, you know I’ve never been as into the whole holiday scene as you and Daddy. And it’s just been a pretty rough time … ever since I lost Malulani…

She closed her eyes and exhaled, the wave of pain evident in her voice as her mother did not press the issue further. Guilt could very easily be a mother’s best weapon against a stubborn child, but there was a time and a place for everything. This was not one of those times, even Nalani recognized that fact.

Nalani: I understand. I may not like it, but I understand. You can’t blame a mother for not wanting her child to be alone.

Tempest: I know, but I’m fine. Will be - fine.

Nalani: Well then! I’ll let you bet back to your day. Call me later, okay? So you can say hello to the family. Promise.

Tempest: I promise. Love you.

Nalani: Love you too, dear.

She hit the ‘end call’ button on her phone and set it aside on the kitchen countertop, and felt a sense of relief that it was over. And felt an almost sense of guilt for feeling that way. She adored her mom. She loved her, as well as all of her family, more so than she had ever let on. But there were times when she just did not want to hear it. Times when she simply wanted to sit back and be left alone. Stepping back into the kitchen, she picked up right where had left off when her mom had called; grabbing a few slices of pizza and opening a bottle of beer.

Carrying both around to the living room, she prepared for what she felt at least, would be a pleasant enough day; beer. Food. And a triple header courtesy of the NFL. The game between the Vegas Raiders and the Dallas Cowboys had captured her interest out of all the games, but she intended to make a day of this before worrying about making it to California for her title defense this coming Sunday.

But as fate would have it, some plans were not always to be. No sooner did she sit down and pick up the remote for her television when there was a resounding knock on her apartment door. She looked up in surprise, as few have ever deigned to simply show up at her door. She knew it could not be the neighbors, as she kept to herself so there’d be no reason. Perhaps Gabriel was to make one last minute pitch to go over to Synn and Despayre’s house for the annual feast? But as she dropped the remote and rolled her eyes before pushing herself to her feet, she was most certainly not expecting to open the door and find …

Tempest: What the hell are you doing here!?

Austin James Mercer.

Austin James Mercer: Thanks, I’d love to come in.

Yes, indeed. Austin James Mercer, her tag team partner and indeed - friend, was at her door in his holiday best and holding something covered in foil in his hand. And without so much as an invitation, he simply stepped inside her apartment, leaving her rather - confused? In more ways than one. He turned around and looked at her expectantly as she shut the door behind him, and she approached him, hands held up. Eyes closed, and shaking her head.

Tempest: Mercer, what are you… no, wait. Hold off on that thought. How the hell are you even here!? I never told you where I lived!

Austin James Mercer: Yeah, thanks for that, by the way. Real friendly like. Almost as much as you just ghosting my invitation.

It was a stare down between the tag team partners/friends, and neither was or would yield.

Tempest: Don’t change the subject! How the hell did you find out where I lived??

Austin shrugged.

Austin James Mercer: I asked Despayre.

Tempest: And he TOLD you!? Just like that!?

Austin shifted uncomfortably and clenched a hand over his mouth, clearing his throat.

Austin James Mercer: No. His, uh, teddy bear did.

Tempest just STARED at him and Austin closed his eyes.

Austin James Mercer: Please … don’t make me explain it!

He then opened his eyes again and there indeed was a hint of worry in his eyes.

Austin James Mercer: Why didn’t you accept my invitation? Or at least let me know you weren’t interested? Rather than just not showing? I had the others asking me where you were!

Tempest turned away from him so he wouldn’t see the sudden stricken look sweep across her face, or if he’d be able to sense the guilt awash on her features. She walked across the living room floor and made to retrieve her bottle of beer. But as she picked it up and turned back around, she found perhaps the biggest and juiciest turkey drumsticks being held up right in her face. She pulled her head back and away and gave him the biggest ‘WTF’ expression she was capable of mustering.

Tempest: What the hell do you think you’re doing!?

Austin James Mercer: My wife made you a plate, Alleyene!

Yes, he used her given name rather than call her by her ring name. That spoke more about the bond between the two that he could do so without being reprimanded for taking that sort of liberty. Austin then turned and looked down at her coffee table and the paper plate with the slices of pizza on it, then into the kitchen where the open box sat on the counter. He then mumbled as he gave his own ‘WTF’ look.

Austin James Mercer: And not too soon, I see.

He set the plate down and pulled the foil off, and revealed the mouth watering feast; turkey, cornbread stuffing, a literal mountain of mashed potatoes, greens, dinner rolls and probably the biggest piece of pumpkin pie she had ever seen. Tempest looked down at this and admittedly felt the pang in her stomach growl inaudibly. But she looked up to Austin…

Tempest: I KNOW you don’t expect me to eat all THAT!

Austin frowned.

Austin James Mercer: Oh give it a rest! I’ve seen you put away more than this whenever we hit the buffets! You and I made the manager of that place in New York actually cry!

Tempest: Why are you doing this?

Austin James Mercer: Because I give a damn, alright? Is that so hard to believe?

Tempest brought her one hand up and pinched together her thumb and forefinger in the universal sign of ‘a little bit.’

Austin James Mercer: Smart ass… So, why didn’t you accept? Or at least let us know you weren’t coming?

Tempest: It’s just another day to me, Austin. Most holidays feel that way. Have felt that way since…

She looked aside and shrugged, and to his credit, Austin didn’t press. He didn’t need to. He had deduced some time ago that something had happened in her personal life, to her husband to be specific, that had caused her such a great amount of emotional pain.

Tempest: Let’s just say I haven’t felt very thankful.

Austin James Mercer: Gee, thanks a lot!

Tempest turned to him with a frown, but to find him with a shit eating smirk on his own face, telling her without words that he was just ‘busting her chops.’ He reached over and placed a hand on her shoulder, and for once, she did not shrug it off.

Austin James Mercer: Trust me, I understand. I’m not going to press or try to force you to come with. If you’re not up for it, you’re not up for it.

Tempest: Well, thanks for understanding at least.

Austin nodded, then turned and headed for the door. He pulled it open and turned back to her…

Austin James Mercer: Eat up! Oh and I did the turkey so feel free to tell me later how much you loved it. Happy Thanksgiving!

Tempest: Same!

She raised a hand in farewell, watching as the door closed behind him. She then turned around and surveyed what was before her… an empty apartment, she was the only one there. A television airing a game. A half-drank beer bottle in her hand, a pizza in the kitchen, and a plate full of a homemade feast that someone had taken pain staking measures to share with her. It was as if a wave of loneliness had swept in from all directions and struck her at once. She closed her eyes and shook her head at how she was feeling inside until…

Tempest: Shit…!

Quick as she was able, she picked up the plate and ran it to the kitchen to put inside of the fridge. She then ran to the door and grabbed her favorite denim jacket from the hook and swept the door open wide…

Tempest: Austin…!

And there he stood, standing facing the door with an expectant smile on his face.

Austin James Mercer: I know EVERYTHING!

Tempest begun to slip her arms into the denim sleeves of her jacket, glaring at Austin.

Tempest: Yeah? You know how fast I’m coming to using that turkey leg as a catheter?

Austin snorted.

Austin James Mercer: A catheter? Please! You’d need a bigger drumstick!

Tempest rolled her eyes as she locked the door behind her and allowed Austin to escort her toward his car...

---

Tempest sat on the patio deck of her apartment complex in Las Vegas, having brought the Thanksgiving evening to a conclusion for 2021. The members of Wolfslair had treated her warmly, like one of their own. When asked where she had gone, the Stevens were not insulted that she had decided to spend the evening with Austin and company at the last moment. They were simply happy that she had decided to go somewhere - anywhere - rather than spend the day alone as she was wont to do.

But now, she sat on the wicker chair (fun fact: she had a love for all things wicker), leaning back with a cold beer in her hand as she looked out into the night sky.

“I was going to wait and cut this promo in Stamford, but after checking things out and asking around, I had to wonder what the point would even be. There is literally nothing to do in that city or any places of interest to even schedule a shoot!”

She took a drink from her bottle and for a moment, seemed relaxed and content.

“You know, part of me wishes I had taken the time to go home to Hawaii to visit my family. I can’t deny that I had a good time with Austin and his family and the rest of Wolfslair for Thanksgiving, but there is truly nothing like a Thanksgiving back home. Alex Jones had asked me about differences in celebrations and really, it’s just the food. Everybody knows what the traditional food is for Thanksgiving in the vast majority of the States, but in Hawaii? While we do the whole turkey and mashed potatoes deal, same as you, we also add a bit of flare to the rest of the table. Purple potato soup. Coconut sweet potatoes. Butternut squash dressing. Garlic- and pineapple-glazed ham. I think by the end of my explanation, I had Alex and Austin both wanting to go to Hawaii.”

“You are probably wondering where I’m going with this, and what it has to do with my match this what it has to do with the match that Austin and I have waiting for us this weekend.”

She sat there, shaking her head.

“Nothing, really. It was leading to an entirely different point, that I never quite understood this holiday. Oh I understand its history and the traditions behind it, but the sheer level of hypocrisy that so many people want us to swallow as the new norm. A holiday where you celebrate being thankful for everything that you have, when twenty-four hours later you stampede perfect strangers to get a hundred dollars off a giant screen TV. Or kids start screaming and crying until their parents give in and start sending those letters to Santa with more wants and demands. I guess what I’m saying is that all in all, I’ve had a rough past. Some of it by my own design, much more not. But I’ve had some good things happen as well; things like my training at the GO Gym and being made to feel like family by (almost) everyone there. A career I love in SCW where I get paid to travel and beat the hell out of a bunch of conceited, entitled Barbie dolls. And for my tag team partner Austin who isn’t as bad a guy as he might want you to believe.”

“I’m even thankful for what SCW has given Austin and myself as a bit of an early holiday present; that being our championship defense this weekend. Main Event no less, and a return match from High Stakes XI against Goth and Mercedes Vargas. When our defense in New York was first announced, I was beside myself. I think I made it all too clear just how thrilled I was to step inside of the ring with a woman like Vargas. A woman who I legit respected and admired as both a trailblazer in the ring, as well as being a certifiable legend. Then -- something unfortunate happened.”

“I watched her promos and realized just how high her head was in the clouds and how little she actually acknowledged the women she was up against and what they had to say. I say how much I look forward to facing her, she speaks as if I hate the very ground she walks on. I say that out of every woman I’ve been inside of the ring with since the ink on my contract for SCW first dried, she is the one I respect the most? She talks down to me about how I’ll never measure up to her accomplishments or her skill inside of the ring. And after hearing all of that, you would think that my respect for the woman was chucked out the window just like that!”

She let loose with a whistle and jetted her thumb back over her shoulder in a symbolic gesture. She then shook her head.

“Nothing could be further from the truth. I may have admitted annoyance with her acting as if paying attention to what I said was beneath her, but the attitude? The self assured sense of superiority? That much I can still admire, because the woman has earned every right to be a stuck up bitch! Everything she has said from day one about her endurance on the roster and her legacy is one hundred percent fact! That’s also why when Austin and I left New York still the Mixed Tag Champions, it made the win so much better. Knowing that for everything she said and thought of me, that Austin and I, not she and Goth, were the Mixed Tag Team Champions when all was said and done.”

“Just like I predicted, she gave me the best fight of my relatively short career. The woman was a freaking lioness going up against a storm, scratching and clawing and DAMN did she do me proud! Because I may not have been the one to secure the win for my team, but the simple fact that I was able to take the fight to a woman like that, even if she is a third my size, is something that I look back on with pride. And the rematch that she and Goth have been granted out of the blue?”

She shrugged.

“It’s just evidence to the fact that everything I said about that match, the higher ups felt the exact same way. I mean, why else would they be handing a championship match for the second straight time to the same team? Do they expect the end result to be different or the same? Who knows? But Mark and Christian loved the match. The fans loved the match, and quite frankly, so did I! Our title match at High Stakes XI was a money maker, and why wouldn’t they want to repeat that level of success?”

“And no, sorry to rain on the parade of any of Goth or Mercedes’ supporters, but the result this time will be no different than it was three weeks ago. See, I wouldn’t be a bit surprised if Mercedes was just as discomforted by this rematch as I am excited for it. Because we all saw how confident she was going into it. How she told the entire world how I’d never rank compared to her. And she brought the fight to me, but I did the same to her! Yes I dished it out just as everyone has come to expect from me, but I sure as hell was able to take it and maybe THAT was the last thing expected from Mercedes. So yes, Mercedes, I admit that I am not at your level - yet. But in time, I will be. Everything that I want to be and want to accomplish? I will! But do you know what I am that you aren’t?”

“A champion.”

“You are not, and you sure as hell won’t be. Not at my expense, and Austin already showed Goth it won’t be by his either. I heard a few people act surprised that Austin ended the match by pinning Goth, and I thought…”

She shrugged, scoffing audibly.

“Why? Austin has been one of the most dominant Superstars in recent memory! Goth was away for how long and thought he would just come back and pick up right where he left off? Honey, it doesn’t work that easily. Austin proved that then, and he’s going to prove it again. His pinning a Hall of Famer was no upset. It was a certification of just how damn good he is at what he does. I have a hell of a tag team partner that has my back, as well as a damn fine friend! For that, I am thankful. And the two of you…?”

She waved a finger back and forth in front of the camera, indicating the tandem of Mercedes and Goth.

“You two, have absolutely nothing to be thankful for.”

All Hallows Eve -
The Go Gym

Gabriel: What the bloody hell are you doing here?

Those were the exact words that Gabriel said in a state of surprise when the door to the Go Gym’s lobby swung open and the 6’3” amazon Tempest stalked inside, her gym bag swung over her shoulder as she approached. A slight frown creased on her brow as she detoured from the women’s locker room in the back of the gym to where Gabriel stood in front of one of the two rings, personally supervising a session with a handful of students inside of the six-sided ring.

Tempest: Well, hello to you too.

She stepped up to his side and cast a sidelong glance to the session currently going on inside of the ring. Two young men were engaging in a mat wrestling session where one youth had ensnared the other into a side headlock and hip tossed him over to the canvas, whereas the other quickly countered the predicament by ensnaring his co-student into a head scissors. While his ‘opponent’ bucked his legs in an escape attempt, the young charge briefly glanced at Tempest and his face blanched as if he suspected one of them would be coerced into being her sparring partner and he doubted either one would be ready for that just yet.

Her reputation had preceded her.

Tempest then turned away from the in-ring action and smiled at Gabriel, a rare thing indeed but he was a man that had long ago earned her respect. He was a man of his word and a hard worker, and he always took care of his own. Admirable traits, and regrettably, ones that ran quite rare these days.

Tempest: Might ask the same of you, though. Surprised the Gym is even open considering tomorrow is Halloween. Shouldn’t you be getting your little ones ready?

Gabriel: Despy’s usual Halloween party is tonight. Odette is finishing getting the kids ready for Trick or Treating. They wanted their costumes to be a surprise so that’s why I’m here. So long as you’re in town, you could come…?

Tempest shook her head.

Tempest: I don’t do the costume thing. I appreciate the gesture, though.

Gabriel: But you’re changing the subject. You do that a lot, you know?

Tempest made a face, knowing she had been caught. It was true, however, what he said. When there was an unavoidable truth to be told, and she didn’t want to confide, she made the attempt to sway the topic at hand. Sometimes without realizing it. It had just always been that way so she there were times she didn’t even realize that she was doing it. Like when questions arose every now and then from the Stevens about her personal life or past. They didn’t do it to be nosy or to pry. She, like the other students before her, had come under their care. And despite the fact she was a grown woman and probably the oldest of the GO Gym graduates, she found it endearing how Gabriel and Odette looked out for her. Getting to know her by bits and pieces was simply another method; even if there was a part of her that yet remained hidden.

Tempest: Fair. I was in town and decided to see if you were open to get in a last minute session before I went back to New York.

Gabriel: ‘Went back’? You mean you were in New York and you decided on a whim to fly cross-country to get in a workout? You do realize the hotel Odette set you up in has a gym in-house?

Tempest: Yes, but it’s not here. And they don’t have a ring.

Gabriel: Okay, point for you. So what are you trying to do? Rack up some frequent flyer miles?

Tempest: No. Just something personal I wanted to take care of.

Gabriel: And it couldn’t have waited?

This time she did not answer with words. She bit her lip and gave her head a slight shake to indicate that it could not have waited, at least to her it couldn’t. This had further attracted Gabriel’s attention - as well as his concern - and he turned away from what was happening inside of the ring and addressed her directly.

Gabriel: Is it something Odette or I can help you with?

Again, she smiled. That was just like the Stevens. Even if she was off putting or flat out in denial over things, they were always there for her and every other student that came through those doors. Or at the very least, they tried to be. They saw themselves as more than just trainers. Everyone who passed through those very doors became family. And you took care of your family, no matter what.

Tempest: It’s not that serious, Gabriel. If it was, I’d tell you.

To that, Gabriel’s left eyebrow rose in a critical and questioning manner, causing her to snort back a laugh of derision.

Tempest: Maybe.

Gabriel smiled at himself this time and nodded.

Gabriel: Okay, I won’t pry. But it is getting late. You can probably get in at least a quick workout. I’d hate to subject either of these young lads in here to being your sparring partner so … I’ll get them both to do it.

Tempest turned away with a haughty laugh.

Tempest: Oh I’ll bet they’ll just LOVE that!

She marched away and toward the ladies locker room where she had first intended, not having noticed that Despayre had followed her into the gym after buzzing her through the doors. He had a lime Blow Pop between his lips, watching after her, then glancing upward at his “big brother” with those gray, puppy dog eyes.

Despayre: She’s not telling the whole truth.

Gabriel looked down at him, curiosity etched on his face.

Gabriel: Tempest?

Despayre just nodded, swirling the sucker stick in his fingers. Gabriel looked after the direction she had just vanished into the back, then draped an arm around Despayre’s slim shoulder and drew him in closely.

Gabriel: Do you know something, Despy?

---

“So I know I’m the new one around here, but do they do Trick or Treating here?”

“Trick or Treating?”

“Yes, the kids in the building. I know some apartments arrange something for the kids, so I was just wondering…”

“Oh, yes. I’m sorry. Yes, the building manager arranges something like that every year. Usually on the night before Halloween.”

Good to know. That was the exchange that Tempest had with a neighbor several weeks ago in the month of September. Why, you might ask?

Honolulu, Hawaii -
2016

She stood there years before she would become known as the amazon Bombshell aka Tempest. And despite her reputation for nothing upsetting or frightening her, she could not deny that the nerves was sending her stomach into a fit of turmoil. She had been dating the man that would soon become her husband, so this was naturally the next step in becoming a member of his family. Meeting the most important female in his life, and no. We are not referring to his mother.

Alleyene watched as Malulani held the small hand of the girl who could not be more than three years of age, escorting her through the gardens of the family’s front yard estate. She was an adorable sight, wearing a floral print dress with a matching ribbon catching her hair into a ponytail. The little one seemed hesitant, but whether that was because she was about to meet a stranger who was more than, or because she was just as big physically as her own dad, that remained the question.

Malulani Kahale: Alleyene? This is my daughter, Anela.

The man spoke gently, using the child’s hand in his own to steer her a step closer, despite the little girl’s own reluctance.

Malulani Kahale: … My daughter.

Alleyene smiled, despite her own nerves, and lowered herself to her knees so that she might not be so daunting a presence. Not that it mattered. Even on her knees, Alleyene remained a towering monolith over this child. Alleyene offered her hand to the little girl who eyes it warily.

Alleyene: Anela? I’ve been looking forward to meeting you.

Anela finally looked up into Alleyene’s eyes and slipped her hand into her own.

Anela: Are you going to be my new mommy?

---

Las Vegas, Nevada -
Current

“Trick or Treat!”

Came the sing-song symphony of young voices just outside of her apartment door. It was something that she had been hoping to experience, and looked forward to for several days now. The door to the apartment opened, and yes indeed, it WAS Tempest, but unlike any situation she had been seen in yet. She wore a tiger striped body suit costume, with matching ears headband and just the right amount of makeup on her face to depict the nose and whiskers. In her hands was a big bowl brimming with candy; everything from Snickers to Skittles and several varieties in between. A melancholy smile on her face, she leaned down so that the children in colorful costumes, from pirates to zombies and many a Disney Princess, could reach forward and eagerly help themselves….

---

“There’s a saying; if you want something done right, you have to do it yourself. I can’t even begin to stress just how much I put behind that belief. It’s something that I’ve believed in for years. From the time I played sports in school, to when I personally ran my business in Hawaii, right up until now when I set foot inside of the GO Gym, and stepped out, an officially contracted wrestler for SCW.”

(“Sorry but I just have such a thing against being called a ‘Bombshell’!”)

“Now this belief, it might strike some as strange considering the fact I say it as not just a member of an active tag team, but one-half of the reigning World Mixed Tag Team Champions. Still, it’s true. Nothing against Austin who has more than proven his worth as a partner and admittedly over time, someone that I can and have hung out with. Maybe even confided in a little. But tag team wrestling was never my intention when I first delved into this sport. Despite the massive success rate Gabriel Stevens had in the very same division with Despayre as his partner, standing out on the ring apron and watching someone else take my career into their hands never sat right by me. If I was going to be a success, I was going to do it. Me. Alone. And that is where I think this whole mixed tag team division became less of a hindrance and more of a blessing.”

“I still wonder what went through the mind of Alicia Lukas when she first came up with the idea of putting Austin and myself together. Maybe she did it to annoy Mercer because he probably feels the same way about tag team wrestling as I do. Or maybe because she knew damn well that alone, he and I were both dangerous but as a team? She might have had something against the new champions the Barnharts and just wanted to turn us loose and have a laugh at their expense.”

“Funny that, after that title match, nobody was laughing. Least of all the Barnharts. Not Austin or myself, and I think Alicia herself may have watched what he and I did and have done, and is now thinking to herself ‘Dear god, what have I done!?’ Funny that, but every other team, both man and woman, that we've faced since becoming champions, have went and asked the very same question. They’ve been cursing the name of ‘Queen’ Alicia ever since, knowing that the days where they had at least some semblance of a chance at winning the mixed tag gold have never been further away than what they are right now. Which is sort of where my entire point behind my personal mantra comes into play.”

“You see, aside from the Barnharts and J2H and Crystal, we haven’t exactly had a long line of challengers lining up to try and make an attempt at dethroning us. And why? Oh we know the majority say that they too have little to no interest in tag team wrestling. Maybe they say there aren’t any other Superstars or Bombshells whom they trust enough to even form a team in the first place. It went from one point where we had some ‘Lethal Lottery’ team thrown together to a team where one woman tried to use the stature of her partner to find herself back at the top of a ladder - any ladder. Not exactly the storybook of champions, is it? There were times when Austin and I were just wondering if the championships were being used as a treat - or a Supercard-only exclusive. We were starting to get pissed off, and rightly so, when we decided if we wanted a real challenge, then we had to fight for it. So, we did what others have done before us and issued an open challenge. I bet Mercer money that Extreme Chamber or not, Jessie Salco would probably try to get involved in this because that’s what she does, but no. Lo and behold, wonder of wonders, we got an answer to our challenge.”

“A real challenge!”

“From out of nowhere, two certifiable Hall of Famers, two of the very best of the best, step forward and take us up on our offer for High Stakes XI, and it’s none other than Mercedes Vargas and Goth! And I can tell you right now, from talking to Mercer and how I personally feel? I feel like Christmas has come early because finally - FINALLY - we have something that we’ve been asking for months! A legitimate challenge for the tag titles!”

“I know, I know. Our last Supercard defense was against a team that could be called the same; a combination of two Hall of Famers, but I can’t help but look past that. Not because of J2H because I’d be a damn fool to feel anything but respect for that kid and everything that he built himself up for. But Crystal herself? She used what happened to her own daughter as a means to an end. As a way to get herself back into the championship picture and managed to goad J2H into being her partner for that reason alone. J2H made his feelings clear where she was concerned. He held up his end of the bargain, but she did not. That is why I look past that match and toward this one with fresh eyes and an excited heart! Because Goth asked Mercedes to be his partner to answer this challenge, and she readily accepted for no other reason than to become a champion again for her own merit. Not anyone else’s. She’ll be there for him, and he her.”

“Goth, you might have settled all ill will with Despayre but as far as the GO Gym goes? You might think of yourself as something akin to the Bogeyman on those grounds. Gabriel had known you for so many years, from your days together in the old AWA, right up until the tile the two of you were on opposite sides of the ring in the early days of SCW. Where Gabriel and the Gym go? You simply are. You never go away, and one way or another, you find your way back into the lives of Gabriel and his students. This time, that student is myself. Now I know I can’t face you inside of the ring - intergender rules and all that - but that doesn’t mean your decisions and actions do not affect me in any way, shape or form. Because they do. I’m from the GO Gym. I’m one-half of the champions that you want to become. And accepting our open challenge was your idea, as is my understanding.”

“That’s fine. I get it. You want to be a champion again and the mixed tag titles are as good a place to start as any. Austin felt the same way, and after some time, so did I. Problem is, we’re the champions. And you? You have to face the man at my side while I step into the ring with your partner. The woman you chose above all others. I’m not altogether certain she’ll thank you for this opportunity when all is said and done, but where you’re concerned? I know what you’re capable of. As a graduate of the GO Gym, I was made to sit back and watch tapes of both men as well as women from times past. But I also know what Austin is capable of. I know just how much he wants to keep hold of these championships, and that is why I have every confidence that he will do his part, as I will mine, and we will walk out just as we entered; the champions.”

“No knock on you, Mercedes. Because everything that you heard me say before our Halloween match? I meant. Every. Word! I have a bucket list of women that I would dearly love to step inside of the ring with because not only do they have well-earned prestige behind their names, but I know that size difference aside, they’ll give me the fight I want. And your name? Mercedes, you are at the very top of that list. Seriously! Do you think I have fun facing and taking apart all of these Barbie dolls, week in and week out? The last time I had a legit threat inside of the ring, it was Bobbie Dahl! But she was closer to my size and those opponents are few and far between!”

“Yes, I admit it is fun throwing those little girls who think their looks are enough to get them by in life, all across the ring and beat them within an inch of their lives. Proving to them if they can’t right back, they really don’t have much business being in the ring with someone like me. Finding a woman half my size who can still bring the fight to me? That is you, Mercedes. Somehow, I don’t doubt it in the slightest. Now these days I watch your promos and sometimes it’s like a broken record of mentioning your age or how many years you’ve been competing and I think, for god’s sake! She’s not one of the Golden Girls! She’s Mercedes Vargas! It’d be nice if for once she would just remember that!”

“And just last week? When we had our little one on one in that ridiculous match? I got a glimpse of who you are and what you’re capable of. Had you put in the slightest effort to hype or match, maybe a promo? I’m sure things would have been even more impactful between us. But I won. And I enjoyed doing so because not only did you show me what you ere made of, but I gave you a taste of what is to come!”

“No coffins this time, however. This time it’s just you and me, girl, while the men watch from our corners and we give them something to strive for. Right up until the bitter end when history repeats itself, and I walk away the winner for the second straight time. As I said, no knock. All the mad respect in the world for you, I have. I’m just stating a simple fact, and giving you a reason why you should have told Goth no. It won’t be pretty, but DAMN will it be fun!”

The funny thing was that originally Tempest had booked for herself a room at the Holiday Inn for her stay in Philadelphia, but she quickly found out something about her trainers, Gabriel and Odette Stevens. And that was that they had this habit of taking charge when they felt and believed that their charges deserved more or better. And considering that Tempest, their latest graduate, currently reigned as a World Mixed Tag Team Champion alongside Austin James Mercer, there was simply no way that the Holiday Inn would do. So, with or without her consent, the Stevens put in a call and had her accommodations not only changed, but upgraded by a considerable amount.

Tempest stood in awe from the moment she set foot into the suite at the Bellevue Hotel in Philadelphia, not the most expensive but quite grand all in its own right. From the outside it came close to resembling a palace, and the inside was not only fancy, but also warm and welcoming. It had a magical and festive feel to the very building, making every guest feel as if he or she were in a movie setting.  It was located in the central area of the city so that if she had a desire to take part in anything touristy, she would easily be able with a minimum of fuss. Not that there was much chance of that as Tempest had a habit of staying within the confines of her room, no matter where SCW ventured. She just was not much of the tourist/sightseeing sort. Unless, of course, someone had the brass to drag her out into the city to experience something other than her hotel’s painted walls and wifi. And that someone was usually Austin James Mercer who had seemingly taken it upon himself to ensure his tag team partner learn to live a little and have a little something called “fun” every so often.

Only this time might end up a little bit different.

Tempest: I’m telling you momma, this place just isn’t me!

Of course, Tempest was talking to the woman who held her respect more than anyone else on the face of the planet, her own mother, Nalani Mahoe. Tempest knew Austin would most likely attempt to corner her, no matter where she was staying, and as luck might have it, for good or ill, he just so happened to be staying in this very same establishment.

Nalani: Sweetheart, I know you’re not into the whole grand, princess scene, but just try to enjoy yourself. From what you told me, the Stevens put you up there because they wanted you to be comfortable and felt that you deserved it.

Tempest sighed as she took a seat on the edge of her bed.

Tempest: I know, but that little fact makes me feel even more apprehensive. Guilty, even.

Nalani: What on earth for???

Tempest: Oh you know me, momma. I never was comfortable accepting gifts or hand outs. If I couldn’t do it myself, I wouldn't be interested.

Nalani: I think in cases like this, it might be more like you are interested but you feel bad about others spending their money on you.

Tempest sat there silent, not saying a word to how her mother saw the situation with her daughter. Because, in truth, she had hit the nail on the head. Tempest had paid her own way through life for as long as she could remember. If someone did manage to talk her into going out to a meal, their treat, rest assured she would find the cheapest thing on the menu just so that she did not feel like a burden on them, or their bank account. But this luxurious hotel? When Tempest did a google search to find out just what Gabriel and Odette were spending on her so that their student was comfortable, she could have cried. If she was the sort.

Nalani: Let’s look at this logically, okay? You make good money still from owning your bonds business, correct?

Tempest just shrugged and answered with a silent nod.

Nalani: If you have the money to treat someone to something a little fancy, if you felt that they deserved it, would you?

Tempest: If I thought they deserved it, I suppose so.

Nalani: Then why waste time feeling bad about allowing someone else to do the same for you?

A soft laugh escaped from her daughter’s lips, telling Nalani that her words struck a proverbial cord. True, her stubborn nature might never really overcome this feeling she had regarding other peoples’ money, but it would at the very least ease some of her own feelings. Tempest cast a sidelong glance at the TV in her room which she had kept on for background noise, and something advertised caught her attention. Something that she had eagerly been anticipating and yet somehow in the rush of getting to Pennsylvania, had completely forgotten about.

A feature film released this very day, very appropriate for this time of year.

Tempest: Momma? What’s the date today?

Nalani: The fifteenth, why?

Tempest: I just thought of something that I would like to do today. Can I call you back tomorrow?

Nalani: Of course. Go out and have a good time - for once. Love you!

Tempest: Love you too.

That said, Tempest ended the call and turned her cell phone off, tucking it into her jeans pocket. She then grabbed her tanned aviator jacket and quickly exited her hotel room door, shutting it behind her. She walked with a brisk pace down the hall until she came upon the elevator. And a brief pause later as the elevator descended and she arrived on the lobby floor, as luck would have it, just as the doors slid open and she went to step off, Austin James Mercer moved to step on.

Austin James Mercer: Hey, where are you off to…?

Tempest: Come on!

She said, not giving him any time for questions or to even protest as she grabbed his arm and pulled him along with her…

And less than an hour later, in the darkened AMC Theater, Tempest and Austin kicked back with sodas and impossibly large tubs of hot, buttered popcorn, watching “Halloween Kills.”

---

The Pavilion in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The six-sided ring had been set up and throughout the weekend, local fan events would be taking place including radio and local news interviews, webcasts and, of course, the obligatory meet n greets where the SCW Universe could meet their favorite Superstars and Bombshells; have a chat and get a photo op, walking away with a head full of cherished memories. The surrounding stands were empty, but in just days, they would be filled with screaming fans, men and women, young and old. Each one cheering for their favorites and hoping beyond hope that their least favorites would fall in defeat.

Seated on the edge of the ring where she has already made a name for herself, is one-half of the reigning World Mixed Tag Team Champions; Tempest. With her share of the championship draped across her lap, she is wearing a burgundy tank top and tight denim jeans with tanned boots.

“Okay, I have to admit when Gabriel contacted me and told me to haul my ass to Pennsylvania because Mercer and I had a championship defense, I was lost. Like, completely. On one hand, a part of me thought that it was about damn time because these championships aren't amounting to much if they just get regulated to special events only status. Every other champion defends between Supercards, why not Austin and myself? Now I have my dream opponents where these titles are concerned. If Ben and Evie Jordan were to ever return, boom! Then of course, there's the London Underground. Any combination of the four would be the challenge that Mercer and I not only want, but deserve. I would have also supported Bella Madison and her mancake Malachi to get a shot but I understand he’s having a bit of trouble where he is right now.”

She tapped a forefinger to her arm, indicating the injury sustained by Malachi at the hands of a three-on-one attack elsewhere.

“Now that I think about it, we haven’t really been challenged since we defended against J2H and Crystal … Whatever. So many people out there assumed there would be new champions simply because J2H was involved in the match.”

She scrunched up her nose and shook her head ‘no.’

“But due credit to J2H, that one’s on Crystal. He was right when he said he could have found a much better partner than that narcissistic air head. Then I grew curious, wondering who would be the unlucky duo? Granted, the pool of challengers for these titles is shallow, and seemingly getting more shallow with each passing day, but -- I always hold out hope. I admit I kind of like the whole Lethal Lottery system that SCW uses to set the champions up with new and interesting challenges. They’ve come up with a few interesting combinations, like Kain and Mercedes Vargas. But … this? The team they did manage to put together and throw to the wolves? We could have had anybody. Myra Rivers. Fenris. Mac Bane. Seleana Zdunich… but instead…?”

“But this is the one thing that somebody out there is going to have to explain to me, because I am completely lost, is what the hell is Violet Amelia Holt doing in this match!? Now I watched Austin's promo and he gave the little girl some props and respect, but me? I guess I just don't see what it is that he sees. What do I see? I see a little girl who made her big triumphant return to wrestling - and couldn't get past her first match. I see a little girl who Bella Madison took to a draw in her big return. Then in her next outing? She didn't even try! She didn't show any interest or effort in her match against Johanna Krieger. You'd THINK against that bad ass chick, she'd put in SOME kind of effort but…!”

Tempest held her hand up and gave a curt shake of her head, clearly affronted.

“She didn’t, and she got what was coming to her. I haven’t been here as long as Violet. I’m still a rookie compared to her and the majority of this roster. But even I know enough to know if you don’t give it your all, if you don’t put in SOME effort, then you’re not going to get very far. In fact, you’ll go nowhere. And fast. And against the right, or in this case, wrong opponent, all the effort in the world isn’t going to do you a damn bit of good, girl. Face facts, Violet. You can talk as big as you want but the simple truth is you have no chance in the ring against me. Zero. Zilch. You may have the experience but I have the size. I have the strength. And I sure as hell have the edge where training is concerned. Now okay, I get that there have been ‘upsets’ happen where a much smaller wrestler has defeated an opponent two to three times there size…”

She curled her hand and ‘fake coughed’ into it.

“*coughs*Despayre!*coughs* But those are special cases, and Violet is anything but a special case.”

Tempest then took a moment’s pause and glanced upward thoughtfully.

“Unless we’re talking about mental state because if she actually thinks she has a chance at taking me down and out in the ring? Then that girl isn’t just troubled. She belongs in a padded cell. You know what Violet reminds me of, now that we’re on the subject?”


“Right. Exactly! One of these little ankle biters that will run up and bark and growl at something a hell of a lot bigger than they are and more often than not, get sent running away, tail tucked between the legs. That’s you, Violet. You might want to play it safe and try to avoid tagging in because we both know what the end result will be. Just let that partner of yours stay inside of the ring, and let him take the damage we both know is meant for you. It’s a lost cause anyway, so why sacrifice yourself? You seem the type who would throw her partner to the wolves anyway, so why not cut out the idle man and sit back and watch Austin have all the fun?”

“No offense, of course, Lincoln. But when we’re talking about dominance and who the bigger and better man is in this match? All the cards are in this corner, right here. I don’t have to worry about you or really, even consider you to be a part of this match because I have a partner who is going to pick you up and treat you like a child would a fly and pluck your wings off. Austin is the type of man, destined for greatness. He’s already a former World Champion and two-time Internet champion. And you…?”

She leaned forward with a cupped hand over her ear.

“It doesn’t matter if it’s the titles we hold right now, or getting back that World Championship. Austin has the world at his feet - which is appropriate because that is exactly where he’s going to leave you lying.”

Tempest slid off of the ring apron and took one last look into the camera.

“Play it smart, the both of you! Forfeit now and save yourselves a world of pain!”

Tempest then walked off camera and the screen slowly faded out to darkness.

Tempest: Look Gabriel, I appreciate the gesture. I really do, but this? It wasn’t necessary.

The latest in a long string of successful graduates of the famed GO Gym, the amazon Tempest said from her seat at the Steak N’ Shake restaurant along the Las Vegas Strip. Across from her, one of the two responsible for helping to bring her into the world of professional wrestling, Gabriel Stevens, carefully took a bite of the gargantuan burger on his plate. After a moment’s pause, he wiped his mouth with the napkin and looked to her and watched as her eyes roamed the room around them, her attention ever-vigilant from her days as an active bounty hunter.

Gabriel: No, I disagree. Odette and I always try to reward our students when one wins a championship, and yours was overdue. Plus, getting to know you these past months, you didn’t strike me as the type to prefer one of the ritzier restaurants.

Tempest scoffed as she reached down for her own burger.

Tempest: At least not with a married man.

That brought a look up from her trainer as she took a bite. Gabriel smirked and shook his head. A wisecrack, from her. Slowly he was growing satisfied at how she was loosening up and the proverbial walls started to crumble. It was a task. Not even Fenris took this long to feel free enough to be himself as was the woman seated across from him. He could tell there was a haunting behind her eyes. Why? He was unsure.

Tempest: I do appreciate it though.

She said casually as she took a bite from her own meal.

Tempest: I had to get out of the Gym. No offense.

Gabriel: None taken. Mind if I ask why? You left as soon as Krystal came in.

Tempest: You mean you don’t know? You didn’t see on Twitter?

Gabriel shook his head.

Gabriel: Been a bit too busy at home and at the Gym to be bothering with Twitter. Why? What’s been going on?

Tempest: Just a matter of my match with Bella this weekend and Krystal making comments about how she had every intention on interfering to cost me so she could have her one-on-one with Bella at the Supercard.

That certainly got Gabriel’s attention as he looked up before he could take a drink from his glass and slowly set it back down. His brow knitted into a slight frown.

Gabriel: Excuse me? Krystal said she wanted to cost you your match?

Tempest just nodded, silently brooding as Gabriel watched her carefully. One of his students? Threatening to interfere in another student’s match to cost them?

Tempest: It’s crazy. I knew when I got into this business that it was every woman for herself. But I also thought there was a measure of loyalty. At least where students of the same facility were concerned.

To say Gabriel was not pleased with what he was hearing would be a vast understatement. There had always been loyalty shown between the members of the GO Gym. He glanced sidelong to his student as she reached for her drink and he could see the wall around her slowly going back up.

Damn it.

---

“Let me make this perfectly clear. Bella? You and I have a history as I recall. When I first came to SCW, I had a time picking apart certain Bombshells on the roster. Just to get my name mentioned. To make people sit up and take notice. To make the bosses realize I was here. Just for fun. You were one of my first playdates, as I recall. And now, here we are. Our first actual encounter in a match where you have to get past me in order to finally get your chance at the Roulette title. You do know why they saved me for last, right?”

“Because the disappointment is always greatest when you are that close to success, only to fail. When the dumbblonde in a movie running from the crazed killer gets that close to safety, only to fall victim. Just this close to making it. That’s why, Bella. Because they handed you those first two wins on a silver platter. Now? You got me. One of the Mixed Tag Champions. Someone you don’t have a chance in hell of beating. I just thought you’d want to understand why they did what they did.”

“Oh, and Krystal? You made your sense of loyalty perfectly clear. So allow me to do the same. Come anywhere near that ring on Sunday and I’ll make what I did to that other Crystal look like playtime at Disneyland.”

It was meant to be the happiest time of her life, from that point on when Malulani Kahale slipped the wedding band on her finger and she said those two little words that every little girl dreams of saying one day, “I do.” It was meant to make her complete when she became Mrs. Mahoe-Kahale, marrying this brave and wonderful Marine who promised to care for her forever and for always.

It’s funny tragic sometimes the way life plays itself out.

The Norwegian Cruise - 2018

Just twenty-four hours ago, after what their friends and family referred to as a whirlwind romance that stretched four years, Alleyene Mahoe married the love of her life. For the longest time, Alleyene had doubted that this day would ever come. Boys, even men, seemed to shy away from her for either her size or her fierce disposition, but it just seemed that something about her always played a factor in why she had remained alone. She tried her best to play it off like it was no big deal or that she preferred to remain alone without any man taking her away from her life’s goals and ambitions, but who does not every so often feel those pangs of loneliness? Who doesn’t take a walk as the stars begin to descend in the heavens and wonder if such a time might be more enjoyable with someone special, walking hand in hand. If you find yourself seated alone at a restaurant, you watch that couple at another table across the floor and wonder what that special feeling must be like.

Despite her brave face, every once in a blue moon her true self came to the surface and she cried on her mother’s shoulder for one slight to many from a boy in high school or a grown man after. It did not happen too often, but there were indeed times when the woman SCW fans knew as Tempest could be relatively human in nature.

That was why when she met Malulani, she was not just distrustful, but she flat out wanted nothing to do with him. She had been hurt one time too many and did not feel like putting herself up for being hurt yet again. But luckily for her, her Marine was a persistent one. He did not take no for an answer, and for all the boys and men who felt she was too “amazonian” for their masculine tastes and preferences, he found her breathtaking. For all the males who thought her assertive personality was a turnoff, he simply wanted to know more of this amazingly strong woman. Finally, after several weeks of trying, he wore her down and she accepted his offer of a date. And not just any date. He told her to wear her most elegant outfit and he ended up taking her to the Marine’s Ball, one of the biggest events of the social season for those brave men and women and their special someone. And for him to invite Alleyene there for their first date…?

He couldn’t have made a more wise decision. From that moment on, he had shattered the walls she had built around herself from heartbreak, and took her heart for his own. And four years later, on a Maui cliff overlooking the ocean, he made her his wife in front of friends and family.

Alleyene aka Tempest often joked with those closest to her that she knew that Malulani was her one and only simply because he was the only man with the balls to ask her out.

Perhaps surprisingly so, despite the fact she called the Hawaiian islands home, Alleyene had never before been on a cruise. So when Malulani had proposed this to be his honeymoon gift to his new bride, her first cruise, she was admittedly hesitant. But it was better than any other option she could think of, considering she already lived in one of the most romantic and exotic spots on the planet. So despite her hesitancy, her new husband won this particular battle - and she couldn’t have been more grateful for everything that was to follow over the next seven luxurious days.

While under most circumstances, Alleyene was an energetic person who got restless if she wasn’t moving or doing something constructive, she found that there was a whole other world out there if you just opened your eyes enough to see the many possibilities. For the first time in a very long time, she allowed herself to be pampered and to relax, and do you know what she discovered on her honeymoon?

That relaxation can be even more pleasant and even sensual if you allow it to happen with that someone special. Unless she knew you or was completely comfortable with you, Alleyene did not like basic physical contact. She did not enjoy being touched idly whether it be a hug or a hand on the arm. But this she allowed, as Malulani lured her into the cruise’s spa and she and he spent the better part of their first day together being given a pampered treatment. The couple laid face down on the massage tables, joined side by side, as two massage therapists performed joint Swedish massages on the newlyweds, a type of massage made for Alleyene who possessed that aversion to being touched.

Malulani then got her to try something unique on this cruise line, something she had never heard of before; a Chocolate Journey. At first she was excited because, and this is a little known fact about this scary woman; she’s a definitive chocoholic. Then she pondered whether or not this was some morbid kink that her husband might play a hand in. But neither was the truth, as she found herself as well as her husband wrapped tightly from head to toe in chocolate body wraps with cocoa infused aroma therapy. Alleyene felt more surprised that her macho Marine husband was enjoying himself even more so than she was.

After one final treatment, relaxing in a steam bath, Alleyene showed Malulani that night just how much of an aphrodisiac chocolate truly was.

But if she thought that first day was any indication that nothing could be better, or that her husband had ‘peaked’ where his plans during this cruise was concerned and her enjoyment, she was sorely mistaken these next several days.

Malulani had taken it upon himself from that day on to order in each and every meal for he and his new wife. He had paid for the added expense of the grand suite on this cruise, and that came with a spacious patio for them to share and enjoy. Whether it be breakfast, lunch or dinner, the newlyweds did not dine in the hall with all of the other passengers. No, he arranged for room service to be delivered and set up on the dining table, so the two could simply enjoy each other's company. Toasting one another with nobody else in their own little world save for each other.

The evening brought about some of her most cherished memories of her honeymoon cruise, and not for the reasons some of your immature minds might be led to think. She had always preferred the nighttime to day, feeling that there was something almost magical when standing beneath the soft glow of the stars and moon as they hung overhead in the vast heavens.

Alleyene had a diverse taste in music, but one thing she never acquired a taste for was classical music. The type of music that one might hear when seated before a symphony orchestra. Violins. Flutes. Trumpets. Pianos. That just did not resonate with her. But that was exactly where she found herself, surrounded by many other passengers on the cruise but only one that mattered to her. The ‘concert hall’ on the ship was built with an open sky above, much like an amphitheater. Her hand in Malulani’s, their fingers interlaced with each others’, they say and even Alleyene found herself enjoying the symphony concert being put on for their enjoyment beneath the stars.

Perhaps the most enjoyable night was near the end of their honeymoon, when Malulani paid for the special expense this one night for he and Alleyene to sleep beneath the stars. A very special and private balcony had been opened up just for the newly married couple, with champagne and strawberries ready upon their arrival, a private butler, and on the spacious balcony itself, a soft and comfortable bed with just a silken canopy between them and the stars as they slept.

For as little as a Marine gets paid despite the fact that they risked their lives for their country, Malulani had spared no expense for his wife this week. He had saved from the day he had first proposed, and even when their respective families had offered to help with expenses, he respectfully declined, wanting instead for his wife’s well being and enjoyment to be his responsibility and reward. And his alone.

But if there was any one memory that had integrated itself in her mind from that one, blissful week, it was their final night aboard the cruise. When they did little else but stand on their patio deck, hand in hand, and watched as the sun set and blanketed the sky above into a colorful array of pinks, reds, yellows and oranges, until finally the Moon was arisen in all of its glory, and the stars shown over their heads.

It was purely magical. It was…

Gabriel: Alleyene? Hello?

Tempest blinked as in front of her face, her trainer in this rough world of professional wrestling, Gabriel Stevens, snapped his fingers in front of her face, startling her from her private memories.

Gabriel: Earth to Alleyene, earth to Alleyene!

She seemed startled, almost seemingly embarrassed, at the way she had allowed her mind to wander and become distracted as she sat in the Stevens’ joint office at the GO Gym, opposite of the desk where Gabriel himself sat. She said nothing, but merely opened her eyes a little wider and put on her best inquisitive expression.

Gabriel: Where did you just go? I was telling you about some of the things the SCW higher ups will be requiring of you during the course of the week, and you just zoned out.

Tempest: I know, I’m sorry. I’ve been ‘zoning out’ ever since I found out this show was being held on a cruise ship.

Gabriel: Most people get excited this time of year when this event rolls around. It’s a working vacation, but a vacation nevertheless. A few days you get to keep for yourself, but there will be a few also where the bosses have assignments set up for you. Duties you might be suited for. Last year Fenris had to teach a self defense class to a room full of old women. Fan Meets. That sort of thing.

All Tempest did was nod in understanding, but it was painfully obvious that her mind was not altogether where it should be.

Gabriel: Are you okay? You have something against cruises?

Knowing that some people had an adverse reaction or fear in being on the open water, but she didn’t strike him as the sort with such a phobia. All she did to answer his question was shake her head in the negative.

Gabriel: Have you ever been on a cruise before?

Tempest: Once. Just … one time.

She finally looked up to meet his eyes.

Tempest: It’s not an easy thing to reflect on.

Gabriel: Bad memories?

Tempest shook her head.

Tempest: No. Good memories, actually. But that’s why it’s hard for me to look back on.

This line of logic and thought caused a crease in Gabriel’s brow, but then he saw it. In her eyes, he could see something painful. He was a master at reading people, but also felt the need and/or desire to be there for the students of his and Odette’s academy.

Gabriel: Do you want to talk about it?

And for the first time that he could remember, she looked up at him with a genuine smile of appreciation on her face, although the pain in her eyes remained. She shook her head.

Tempest: Not right now.

---

Malulani. In Hawaiian dialect, it meant “protected by Heaven.”

What a crock of shit.

---

“I have to admit that I am still trying to figure this whole thing out. Not just my place in this sport because I’m what you might call a giant in the Land of Barbie Dolls, but where I stand right here. Right now. When Gabriel first told me about ‘Queen’ Alicia’s decision to team me, a member of the GO Gym, with Austin James Mercer, a member of Wolfslair and a man that had been making life miserable for Fenris and his brother Aron, I was at a loss. But what compounded that feeling was the fact that she chose for our opponents the then-Mixed Tag Team Champions, the Barnharts. A world title shot, albeit the tag team titles, announced a week after I lose a match to Bobbie Dahl.”

Tempest shook her head.

“It’s been six weeks since that title match, and I still don’t get what was going through Alicia’s head. But -- respect. Maybe it was a mind game. She looked at Austin and saw him for what he is; one of the biggest men on the roster. Then she looked at me, and saw me for what I am; THE biggest woman on the Bombshells side of things. Put us together against anyone…”

Tempest intertwined her two index fingers and eyes widened and she pulled them apart, mimicking an explosion.

“Even the mighty Tag Team Champions and she knew the end result was a mere formality. Did she do it to help bring more gold to her team? Did she do it just because she hates the Barnharts that much that she wanted to see their title reign end after less than a month?”

She shrugged.

“In the end, the reasons probably don’t matter because the fact stands before everyone.”

She held up her half of the Mixed Tag title belts, giving it a once over before looking again toward the camera.

“New champions were crowned that night. One more on top of all the others that Austin has collected in his career, and my first. And hey, no complaints here which title I started with because we all have to start somewhere. My only concern or complaint is that it took six weeks, six weeks, before Austin and I have been given the chance to defend these titles, which leads me to believe that what Gabriel said about these titles is true; that respected as though they once were, they’ve become the card filler championship for SCW. And now that I see who we’re up against in our first defense, that just works to confirm his belief in my mind.”

“No, we are not defending the titles against the former champions, the Barnharts. Bea kind of ruined that one when she surprised everyone and earned a Roulette title shot for herself. And Bulldog? Well he got himself into a sticky situation with that Vinnie fella, against my boy Fenris and David Shepherd. So, what then? What do the higher ups do to give us a credible team to defend the titles against in our very first defense? Do they make an offer to bring London Underground back, an offer that Daniel and company can’t refuse?”

She shook her head no, eyes closed.

“Do they maybe look to raise the stakes and look outside of SCW, maybe bring in former champions like Lachlan Kane and Sierra Williams (I will NOT dignify the name Team Eggplant!) to attempt to dethrone Austin and myself?”

Again, eyes closed, she shook her head.

“No, of course not. What they did was take a handful of men and women who had nothing better to do, put them in the ring in separate matches where the winners got to team together and challenge us for the gold.”

She jetted out her bottom lip and nodded.

“Makes sense, doesn’t it? But then again, it makes about as much sense as the initial concept that brought Austin and myself together for the first time. And hey! We won the gold in our first match as a team, so who knows? Maybe Miles and Seleana will actually give us the challenge that will prove ourselves as champions…?”

She stared straight ahead at the camera, when suddenly her shoulders started to tremble. She then erupted in a fit of light hearted laughter and waved a hand at the camera.

“Oh god, I was worried I wouldn’t be able to keep a straight face! Damn it!”

She took a brief moment to collect herself.

“No that I have anything against this combination. If I’m going to be honest, all I know about Miles is what I see on Twitter and Seleana? Well she’s one of the chicks that people in the women dressing room seem to gossip about the most. But there’s a saying where gossip is concerned; believe nothing of what you hear and only half of what you see.”

“Miles, all the power to you for winning this chance for yourself, but let’s face it; you beat Lincoln Daniels. Who there in the men’s division hasn’t beaten him? But, a win is a win, and you rose to the occasion. You don’t have to worry about me. I won’t get involved where you and Austin are concerned because you’re his problem, not mine. The only thing I know about you aside from watching your matches is that you post more selfies on Twitter than any woman that I know. All you need is the classic duck lips and hey! You complete the picture! But sweet cheeks, all the ab and booty shots aren't going to be doing you a damn bit of good when you get inside of the ring with a man like Austin."

“No, while you and Austin get to play your little game of Wolfslair against Wolfslair, I get to play with the epitome of the wrestling Barbie culture, and that’s Seleana Zdunich. Okay, granted, Seleana has had a number of big wins for herself ever since she first stepped up, and she’s held a good number of championships. World Championship. Roulette Championship. You might think that a third title for a Triple Crown distinction would not be far off. You might even think that the third title would be possibly the Mixed Tag Team titles be it at Austin’s and my expense?”

“You’d think.”

“Your one detriment going into this match, beside shaving to get into the ring against me, is the simple fact that your wife is not at ringside, and she had absolutely no role to play in this match or opportunity, whatsoever!”

Tempest nodded.

“That’s right, girl. You heard me, and you can respond and deny it for all I care, but the facts have been laid out in front of the world, for all to see. The ONLY times you’ve been put directly into the championship circle is through the machinations of dear Christina. Whether through her backstage clout of working the system, she is behind the height of your success stories. Just … not this time. Which, if you think about it, speaks less of her than it does of you. Because for all we know, without her you still might have won all of those opportunities on your own, without her help. You did it to earn this chance, why not all of the rest of those times? Alas we’ll never know because it’s obvious Christina has little to no faith in your own capabilities, and likes to play backstage politics to help you because she believes that you can not help yourself.”

She jetted out a bottom lip and tilted her head to the side in a woeful expression.

“Sad, if you think about it. And even sadder when Summer XXXTreme IX rolls around because girl, once that bell rings, all the backstage clout your wife THINKS she has isn’t going to help you once I get my hands on your boney ass. And if she even thinks about coming down to the ring to try and help you win? Well, here’s a warning and I hope to god that she’s listening;”

“Things will go even worse for you if your wife gets involved. And that is simply the way the real world works.”

Alleyne Mahoe was a big woman, but one with small needs. She had never had much use for living excessively, or the over abundance of possessing too many material possessions, in particular ones in which she had little to no need. She was not one of those women who would walk into a Target department store and walk out with one of those “Live, Laugh, Love” wall hangings on a whim. It was a trait she had learned from her parents, who were by no means poor, but with a family to raise in Honolulu, they were careful. And if you knew anything about visiting or especially living in this island paradise, it was that it cost a lot of money to be here.

Yet the children were not made to do without just because. They were indulged on occasion, but they were also taught to respect those indulgences. Taught not to take them for granted. So when Alleyne struck out on her own, like her siblings, she did not feel the need to go overboard with money and that taste of freedom, and the pending disaster that could have been the combination of the two. It was why Alleyne aka Tempest chose not to go big when she found an apartment in Las Vegas to live in while she first started her training at the GO Gym. She easily could have done so with the income she still pulled in as owner of Mahoe Bonds back in Hawaii, and the contract she netted once she had been signed as an SCW Bombshell. Unlike it was believed, she did not stay with the Stevens during her training, despite a previous offer. Alleyne had worked a dangerous career, apprehending even more so dangerous criminals. The gunshot and knife wound scars she still sported as “war wounds” were a testament to this, and her being near Gabriel and Odette’s children was simply not an ideal condition.

Her conclusion, not the Stevens.

So Odette had helped her find a place to call her own during her tenure in Las Vegas, one in which she could live comfortably. It was surprisingly easy, given her not being what would be considered ‘high maintenance.’

Maverick & Hidden Village Apartments



The front door opened to the one bedroom apartment, and the 6’3” Tempest set foot inside, the darkening evening sky seen behind her. She closed the door and locked it behind her, then turned around and dropped the keys into a small dish on the oval wooden coffee table in front of the cocoa brown sofa. As stated, there was little unnecessary decor, save for three small paintings and a “Welcome Home” carving, a gift from the Stevens. The paintings? Entirely her own. Just for a little color.

Here’s a small, fun fact about Tempest; she had an appreciation for art.

Back to our story! Tempest then walked across her living room and to the kitchen where she opened the fridge and fished out a bottle of Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, a much desired drink to rest and relax after a hard day’s workout at the Stevens Gym facility. Tempest had indeed graduated from that very Gym in late 2020, but it was a belief of Gabriel and Odette that one never stopped being a student, nor stopped having the need to train, lest their in-ring skill atrophy. And now that she had a big match (literally as well as figuratively) against Bobbie Dahl in just a matter of days, the training would only intensify. With the exception of her being inside of the ring with one of the Icons of SCW in Samantha Marlowe many moons ago, this would be her biggest match to date. Again, literally as well as figuratively, as Bobbie Dahl was the only woman who came close to matching her in size and strength. Thus, she would need to be extra careful and fully prepared.

She had eaten dinner at the Gym, but was still hungry and - after placing an order for delivery from a Greek restaurant she had taken a liking to, she sat at the two-seater table against the wall with her beer to relax, when her phone went off. Sighing, the remainder of her evening now interrupted, she picked up her phone and immediately recognized the number. She clicked on it, answering…

“Hello Mama.” Yes, Tempest indeed was talking to her lovely mother back home in Hawaii, Nalani Mahoe. She pulled the beer bottle from her lips and frowned, “What are you still doing up?”

Her mother answered, “Sweetheart, it’s only just past six here. We’re three hours ahead of you in Las Vegas.”

Tempest cast a sidelong glance at the clock on the wall, reading it indeed was just after nine. She sighed and shook her head. “I keep getting the time differences mixed up. Is everything okay?”

“Yes, Alleyne, everything is fine.” Nalani said.  “Your father and I were just wondering if everything was okay with you. You haven’t phoned in a few days.”

“I didn’t phone every day when I lived in Honolulu and you didn’t call to check on me.”

“Well you’re not in Hawaii right now, are you?” Nalani shot back, and doing so quite easily. Her mind as sharp as always. “Las Vegas is, what? Almost three thousand miles away? Plus a whole Pacific Ocean separating us.”

“Touche.” Tempest said after taking another sip from her bottle and setting it back down on her table. Somehow it seemed almost offensive to be drinking while speaking with her mother. “I’ve just been busy working out and getting prepared for this match on Sunday. You and Dad are going to watch, right?”

Her mom answered, “We haven’t missed one of your matches yet. We’re not about to miss one now. Especially at such a grand event.” Tempest could not help but smile with pride, that both of her parents had invested such an interest in her new path in life. Then her mom said, “We’re just worried about you, that’s all.”

“Worried? About me?” Tempest frowned as her fingers wrapped again around the bottle which now was forming a wisp of condensation on the glass. “That Bobbie chick is not going to be able to beat me.”

“It’s not that, dear. It’s just … You're upsetting so many people.”

Tempest pulled the phone away from her ear and stared at it as if it had just told the foulest joke that made little to no sense. She then resumed the discussion with her mom and said, “I didn't get involved in this sport to make friends, mom.”

“You keep calling it a sport.” Nalani countered.  “It's totally barbaric! I never liked it. It’s why you and your brothers had to sneak behind my and your father’s backs to watch it when you were kids.”

“I didn’t have to sneak anything, Mom.” Tempest protested. “Dad let us watch it.”

And now the shoe was on the other foot as it were, as the silence on the other end of this call was deafening. Tempest smiled, knowing she had just inadvertently thrown her lovely father under the bus and he would most likely be reprimanded by his strong-willed wife. For something that had happened almost thirty years ago.

But then her mom was back on the line, asking a question that Alleyne had heard so many times before. “Why DID  you get involved in wrestling?”

“YOU'RE the one who wanted me to get away from my bonds business!”

Nalani said, “Of course I did, dear, but only because it was so dangerous! We almost lost you once when you got shot! I've seen what some of those wrestlers do to each other! Good lord, that Bobbie Dahl girl put you through a wall!”

“It was the barricade around the ring, Mom.” Tempest corrected her. “Not a wall.”

“My point remains the same.” She said. “You could have done so much more than putting yourself in harm’s way. Just in a different way.”

“LOOK at me Mother!” Tempest argued, her eyes now glistening as old memories that would always remain returned to the forefront of her mind. Her mom and dad always told her how lovely she was, but they were her doting parents. Their only daughter in a family of boys. They had to say that. “I can't exactly be a supermodel! My options are limited!”

Just then, before this could go any further and something that might be said between them, there was a knock on the door to her apartment. Saved by the bell! Or rather, the knock.

“Mom, I have to go.” She said hurriedly to sever this conversation before her Mom could simply repeat the same things she said to a teary-eyed teenage girl after another seemingly endless barrage of bullying and tormenting in school. “There’s someone at the door.”

“Alright, dear.” Nalani said. “Just don’t wait so long to phone us, alright?”

“Alright.” She said as she walked across the room, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand. “Love you.”

“I love you too.” Her mom said in that soothing way, just before she heard the click of the call being ended. Tempest quickly placed the phone on the coffee table, and for a brief moment, her eyes strayed to a framed photograph; one in which Alleyne herself was standing beside a rather handsome man in a military uniform; a Marine’s to be more precise. She seemed frozen, but for the briefest of seconds, before she reached the door ...

---

The GO Gym

The lights remained dim above one of the multiple rings while the remainder of the Gym wax bathed in darkness, everything cloaked in shadow. And there, leaning against the ring ropes and staring outside of the ring was none other than the Amazon Bombshell; Tempest. Her forearms rested heavily against the top ring ropes and that stare bored heavily into the camera.

“Bobbie Dahl. Girl, you just couldn't leave well enough alone, could you? You just couldn't resist the temptation of trying to make your return actually mean something, when under normal circumstances, people couldn't care less. And how do you accomplish this? By playing the role of hero to the Bombshell division. Their savior. Paragon.”

She leaned just a hint to the side with hand raised, palm up, and gave a WTF expression on her face as she added one more word to the equation.

“Hypocrite.”

She leaned her head toward the right, as if confused or perplexed. She gave a slight shake of her head, the modest earrings dangling lightly on her earlobes.

“What's the matter, Bobbie? Didn’t see that coming? Did you think I  wouldn't have known, or done my own research? You know what I’m talking about, girl. Did you think it was so long ago that you hoped the past would stay buried and people would -- oh I don't  know. Forgive and forget? Well let me remind you. And apparently remind everyone else who decided to ignore history and instead hit rewind and erase.”

She held up a hand and counted off a number of names from her fingers.

“Dani Weston. Odette Stevens. Alicia Lukas. Mercedes Vargas. All women you attacked brutally. All women you attacked without a justifiable cause. Oh, wait…”

She held up her hands, eyes closed with a smile and nodded.

“Forgive me. You DID have a justifiable cause - at least in your own head. It was “just business.” Just. Business. Even when one of those victims was a woman you claimed as a friend. That's what getting ahead in this business meant to you, to have your name on the tips of everyone's tongues; to turn your back on a friend. A friend who was recovering from an injury and you put her right back there on the injured list and who has not set foot inside of the ring since! All because of you, Bobbie. And yet there you stand, staring me down in judgement and accusing me of being some sort of heinous monster, when by comparison, you’ve done more. And worse. And did you notice? Two of those names, namely Dani and the GO Gyms matriarch, Odette? Both representatives of the same facility. It's almost as if you held some grudge with the Gym, or at least the female representation. Why? Maybe because every one - every single one - has accomplished more than you ever have  or ever will.”

“You are just DAMN lucky that I wasn’t around back then girl, because the biggest mistake you had made was when you escalated things by attacking Odette Stevens! Remember that? Or is that selective memory of yours acting up again? I can't say I’d be surprised, especially considering that one act was going one too far. Not even I inspired a gang attack like the one that you suffered through! How many women met you in the hall when you got the mass beat down that you deserved? All of the above. You even drew in the ladies from London Underground AND lured Devona back just for that one momentous occasion! And had it not been for Roxi Johnson, a woman you TRIED to attack and failed miserably, you would have gotten worse!”

“Now why in God's name Fenris is  going around, still treating you like gold when you've done so much wrong on people he was or IS close to, is beyond me. But I'm not here to judge who that boy calls friend. It's not my right to judge his poor taste in friends. Just treasure it girlfriend because it seems to be the only friendship that you’ve developed that you haven’t found a way to throw aside. Yet.”

“Now as for me? Samantha Marlowe. Bella Madison. Violet Amelia Holt. Courtney Pierce. Unlike you, I went after two at a time, not one like you, knowing I had them outmatched in size. Oh, and Artie. Let’s not forget him.”

Tempest winked into the camera with a smile.

“How is that little darling doing, anyway? How’s his head? Oh, enough about immaterial people. This is about so much more, Bobbie. This is about just you and I. But come on Bobbie! Everything I’ve done? Every one of those attacks that you’ve been going on about?  It was ‘just business.’ Isn't that what you said for months to excuse what you did?”

Tempest looked upward and shook her head, biting at her lower lip.

“My god. You even have Amber Ryan blinded with fun Bobbie, having her believe me to be a villain and you some heroic figure. You have her saying she hates bullies, not knowing that you were the biggest of them all! Now I get it, girl. I understand just why you did what you did. But right there lies the difference between us. You wanted people to think you were something you're not; a legitimate bad ass. A threat. Someone to fear and be intimidated by. And me? I did it to make a statement and remind everyone that I am all of that, and everything that you're not.”

“Sunday is all the time I need to send you packing back to wherever it is that you came from.”

“Stupid…!” The single glass door to the offices of Mahoe Bonds swung open, and Alleyne Mahoe walked in, well, not to rely on silly or childish puns given her now ring name, stormed in. She was still sporting the tactical gear that was a hallmark of her chosen profession; namely a bullet proof vest over her fitted t-shirt, snug jeans and steel-toed boots. She was angry, and she had a good reason.

Behind her, two of her employees, also fellow bounty hunters, walked in but they had a meekness to their step, as if they knew that they had done something terribly wrong. One was a tall male, not as physically imposing as Alleyne herself, but well made. The other was also male, slim in build and perhaps standing a head shorter than his boss. Both wore the same tactical equipment that she herself was sporting, but unlike her, they stood there as if silently waiting for permission to begin removing the gear just as the boss lady was.

“I just can’t believe what you two knuckleheads just pulled…!” She fumed as she removed her vest and threw it on her office chair, then started to carefully remove the more dangerous equipment that she carried on her person; namely a taser, pepper spray, and the baton on her belt. There were indeed times when she carried a gun, but only when it involved cases with extreme danger. Such was not the case today, but given the rising level of tension in the office, one could have been mistaken for believing the exact opposite were true.

It wasn’t often that Alleyne went into the field, or at least, she didn’t go as often as she wanted to. She enjoyed the thrill when she did so, being something of an adrenaline junkie. She owned the bail bondsmen business in which they now stood, but like her employees, she also was a licensed bounty hunter and when the desire struck, she would accompany her boys onto the scene to apprehend the target. She simply wasn’t the type to sit behind a desk while others took care of the more dangerous tasks. That wasn’t her. But she was also the boss and had to manage the business most days. It was just a lucky thing that today, of all days, she had chosen to go along.

“We got him.” The smaller of the two men attempted to reason with the angry boss lady, even going so far as to reach up and remove the flier that sported the picture of the day’s target; a Mister Atticus Moore. Wanted for repeatedly driving while on a suspended license.

“And got yourself arrested at the exact same time!” Alleyne whirled around to confront the pair. “You two idiots could have been shot! You could have been killed!”

“I still don’t understand…” The taller of the two men started to protest but the look of utter disbelief on Alleyne’s face shut him up faster than any physical threat might. She had her arms folded across her chest as she walked right up to him.

“Clearly, you don’t understand! Now I don’t know, maybe this is my fault somehow. Or maybe you got so caught up in the moment that you didn’t stop to think!” She emphasized her point by tapping her forefinger right in the middle of her employee’s forehead. She then backed up a step and walked back around to her desk and leaned heavily against it, looking up at the two men through her eyelashes.

She said, “So let me explain and hopefully you can understand. Moore fled from us and ran, trying to evade us by ducking into the tree line that surrounded Moanalua High! And you two, being the rocket scientists that you are, slipped your masks on, pulled out your tasers which resemble handguns, and ran after him!” She bellowed suddenly, her skin flushing from the strain, “ON GOD DAMN SCHOOL GROUNDS!!!”

She paused briefly, closing her eyes and rested a hand to her forehead. She took a moment to regain her composure, then once again opened her eyes and they burned right into the two men.

“Did either of you ever stop to think what that looked like when those teachers, and those kids, looked out their windows and saw two masked men moving around with what LOOKED like guns!? After all the school shootings that have happened over the years!? Can you even begin to imagine the TERROR those poor kids had to have been going through until the school got the all clear from the police!?”

And the two men shared a look, and perhaps it was now hitting home just how stupid their own actions had been, all in the name of closing a deal -- or securing the runner. Usually Alleyne’s motto for success was “by any means necessary” … but within reason.

Alleyne continued, “And then I have to think fast and explain to that swarm of police officers who I was and who you were, or else I would have ended up arrested too! Maybe if I hadn’t split to go after his partner, this wouldn’t have happened….”

She trailed off, her temper clearly working overtime as she drew in a deep breath. She slowly exhaled through pursed lips and her eyes turned to them.

“You two have put everything I put into this business at risk.” She said. “Because now word is going to get out, and I don’t doubt that the families of those kids are going to have a word or two to say!”

She walked around the back of her desk to confront the two. “I could lose -- everything! All because you two didn’t think!”

***

“So, did you fire them?”

And this was when we found ourselves back at the GO Gym in Las Vegas. Tempest had been in training, working herself into the proverbial ground in order to be prepared for her eventual in-ring debut. When it came to her training, she was relentless. From the very first moment she set foot inside of the gym, she was in the ring. And if a break was called for a meal or simply a breather, she was found lifting the free weights unless Gabriel or Odette had called her out in order to force a break. The better to keep her from exhausting herself. Such as now, as she sat back against the ringside apron, her tanned body glistening with perspiration from the brutal training regime that the Stevens were noted for. Still, such a regime was also why they had such a high success rate when it came to their graduates.

Bottle of water in hand, she bit at her lower lip as Gabriel Stevens, who had asked the question, calmly waited for an answer. Like Tempest, he too was glistening from the training workout. As he hinted when they first met, Tempest’s training would require a slight change because of her size, and she would most likely have to get in the ring and be trained by some of the men who had walked through these doors; himself included.

She nodded and answered, “I had to. My business was still new, and their actions almost caved it in before I even had a chance to really get started. It’s when I decided to get more ‘hands on’ when it came to going out in the field to apprehend someone. If my business was going to make or break, then the responsibility would be on my shoulders. Not two wet behind the ears pups. No…” She shook her head. “That just taught me two valuable lessons in business.”

“Which is…?” Gabriel asked.

Tempest answered, “Always go for experience, and don’t hire anyone a friend suggests. Of course I lost their parents as friends when I fired their boys, but in business it can’t be about that. It’s business.”

Gabriel nodded as he turned his head around and watched as one of his top students, the gargantuan Osbourne of London Underground, took a brief break from the weights and climbed inside of the ring. Gabriel nudged Tempest as she took a pull from her water bottle.

“Ready to get started again?”

Not saying a word, Tempest slapped the cap back on her bottle and pushed it aside. She then turned around and instead of going back to the weights like Gabriel assumed, she turned and climbed right inside of the ring, joining Osbourne who blinked back in surprise. The rest of London Underground who had chosen to pay a visit to the Gym that day, paused in amusement and curiosity, approaching the ring in which Osbourne stood with the amazon.

Tempest smiled as she stepped right up to Osbourne, and the difference in height was noticeable, but not staggering so as she was only three inches shorter than he was. She just smiled as he stared at her, her own hands flexing from fists and not. Osbourne cast a glance out of the ring and to Daniel Morgan, who just smiled and shrugged his shoulders, having no answer for the big guy. Osbourne turned back to Tempest who looked up at him, ready, as Fenris walked past the group from the back.

“Bitch is crazy!” He muttered.

---

Tempest sits on the ring apron of one of the training rings inside of the GO Gym. She is wearing a gray t-shirt with the GO Gym emblem stitched on it and red, spandex tights with black boots.

“I don’t see myself as being a bad person, not really.

“You know when all of this started between Sam Marlowe and myself -- well, okay, when I started this issue between Sam and myself, I never really thought it would go as far as it did. I went out there and made my statement that first night with her and Sierra Williams. Haven’t seen anything of Sierra since that night, and Sam? Well, part of me wondered if the girl would follow suit, tuck her tail between her legs and follow little Sierra out the front door. But nope!”

Tempest shook her head, eyes closed.

“That girl got some spunk in her. While one turned tail, she was right back in the ring a couple of weeks later. Now I don’t know if it’s the whole ‘redheads’ thing you always hear about or she just didn’t want to give yours truly the satisfaction of putting two Barbie dolls on the shelf at the same time, who knows? But there she was, and I have to tell you…”

Tempest clenches a fist on her hip and she nods, a tight lipped smile on her face.

“I wasn’t half impressed! I don’t know whether she was brave, or just too damn dumb to quit, but she was out there fighting and, well, you know what happened. I had to get a closer look for myself, and see … just as I get a look up close…”

Tempest holds up a forefinger and tilts her head just a hint to the side.

“I didn’t touch her, I have to get marks for that! And that’s when someone else just had to get up in my business! Violet Amelia Holt. Seriously, don’t take your issues out on me by getting up in my business, girl. After all, I ain’t the one who named you ‘Violet’ of all things! Seriously, were your parents planning ahead by sixty years and wanted a cute name your grandkids could call you? Grandma Violet?”

She shrugged.

“Cute. It’s just overstepping the planning stages because I can tell you right now girl, you’ll be damn lucky to last long enough to have kids, let alone grandkids, for getting up in my business the way you did! And make no mistake, Violet; I know damn well why you did. I’ve seen you often enough in SCW and if anybody fits the bill of the Barbie doll stereotype, it’s you! Blonde hair, pigtails, blue eyes… and this obvious insatiable need to be the center of attention! Why else would you bother coming out there and getting between Sam and myself, hm? Because two other women were out there getting attention from the fans and from the bosses, and you weren’t involved! It was driving you absolutely insane. Jealous! So, you just had to go out there and try to get the attention off of me, off on Sam, and onto you. Go on girl, give me another explanation as to why you ran out there that night! Tell everyone why you worked with dear Sammi to get me out of the ring, only to turn on her right after? If not because you wanted the attention for yourself, then … why?”

“I mean, you’re hardly lighting the world on fire, are you? You’re what I’d call the Hit n Miss Queen, because you can pull off a surprise now and then - but only when it comes to lesser opponents like Bea Barnhart. Not a top level competitor or even a rookie fresh out of the GO Gym. And trust me girl, that rookie or veteran, nobody that walks out of the Go Gym is anything less than top quality. You can surprise others with a good showing, but when the chips are down and the quality of competition is up? Girl, you choke.”

“Only, it backfired now, didn’t it? Maybe you thought by standing tall at the end, you’d have Sammi all to yourself? Maybe you banked when Sammi challenged that Johanna chick, that you’d be able to worm your way into a championship match by proxy without really having to do much in order to earn it. Anything goes, so long as it benefits Violet, am I right?”

Tempest reached blindly to her left and picked up a small flower, a violet to be more precise. She looked first at it, and then at the camera.

“Or maybe your family was spot on when they named you after this little thing, because you’ve got more in common with it than maybe even I first realized. Looks cute. Smells sweet, but beneath that surface? Sharply bitter. Oh, and let’s not forget…”

With a flick of her thumb, Tempest snapped the stem and the top half of the flower was left dangling.

“Very … very fragile.”

She gave the ruined bud a toss back over her shoulder and then gripped the ring apron with both hands, leaning forward slightly at the waist.

“Which leaves us with you, Sammi. Little Miss Sunshine, I hear some folks like to call you. But it looks to me as if someone lit a fire under your ass. Now I wonder who that could have been? I sat back and watched that little promo you cut on Climax Control, and for such a little thing, you have some serious bite! So, what is that? Is that the famous redhead reputation that I’ve heard so many people like to joke about? Have I pushed you so far that your ‘Girl Scout’ reputation developed a bit of a crack in its foundation?”

She chuckled.

“Good. There’s nothing more fun than when you’re in there with a Chihuahua that thinks it’s a Doberman. Because that’s all I heard when you were standing there, running your mouth.”

She used her hand to mimic or rather, mock, someone talking rapidly.

“Yip! Yip! Yip! I had a neighbor once who had one of those annoying little ankle biters, and Sammi, when you run your mouth - oh how you remind me of that little thing. It would just go running up to another dog that was five times its size, or to a person who was standing there, and just start yipping away, acting all fierce. But when that larger dog would turn and bark or growl, or the human would shoo it away, do you know what that annoying little mutt did? It would run -- and hide. It would duck behind the leg of the woman who owned it and peek around her leg and just keep up that annoying little bark.”

Tempest pointed at the camera.

“That’s you, Little Miss Sunshine. Because you talk big. You can tell anyone willing to listen how you’re not scared or intimidated to be in there against me, but I saw. I saw that look in your eyes when you looked up and saw me standing over you. The world saw. And the funny thing? I wasn’t going to attack you that day. I was taught long ago never to waste an opportunity so if attacking you had been my intention, then I wouldn’t have wasted any time. I would have done it. I only got physical that night because of little Miss Violet. And now because of her actions…”

Tempest swept her arms out wide.

“Here we are! I would have much rather had you all to myself, but I think that’s one thing you and I can agree on. Violet is incapable of letting any other women share in the spotlight when she’s not involved. Fine. That’s fine. I can grow, I can learn. I can adapt. Because I figure what happened in that little altercation is a foreshadowing of what will happen this Sunday.”

“You and Violet will try your best to keep me out of the match, so you can settle things between yourself. That would be an advantage for the both of you, I admit, but it’s like I said -- you can try. But it’s not going to work because the one thing I know about these Triple Threat matches is that it can only end in a pinfall or submission. No count outs. No disqualifications. And baby girl? In the end, that is only going to end up being an advantage for me.”

Tempest stands upright, sliding off of the ring apron.

“My first Supercard girls, and this storm is going to be a wild one.”[/font]