Advice

Big wins and moments come all to rarely for everyone.

From the biggest star to the newest rookie to a veteran who doesn’t have what it takes anymore. The opportunities are there but not all of them come off. Not all of them materialize in a way that people want or need. So when those opportunities present themselves. When you have a big win, you need to grab it with both hands and hold on, not take it for granted and use every single advantage you have at your disposal.

Every resource.

Every piece of advice.

But sometimes, those resources are harder to ask for advice. To talk to. Zoey took a deep breath, her knees pulled up to her chest as she looked out into her sisters backyard. Her hair hidden under a black baseball cap flipped backward. She took a deep breath, enjoying the early fall weather. Behind her, she could hear them, her nephews, laughing and playing and fighting over the last small pile of nachos on the table.

Zoey chuckled, turning her head as she head the back door slide open. Alicia was home, back from seeing a certain tall, muscular member of wolfslair. She told her boys off, grabbing rhe small pile and popping it in her mouth much to their dismay. She moved around behind Zoey before groaning and sitting down next to Zoey. ”Good lunch date?” Alicia simply chuckled and nodded, stretching as the light breeze moved in front of them. ”Rory and Ryan were good, we played some Mario kart, ate nachos, they told me about school, it was fun.”

”Fun? Good.” Alicia rolled her shoulder, popped her neck and relaxed. She had recovered from all her injuries, any nagging ones she had disappeared. In fact, Alicia had been in better shape now than she had been her entire career till this point.

Zoey closed her eyes taking a long deep breath in, this was hard for her. Going to her sister for any type of advice. ”So…look…I need your help..” She trailed off, Alicia raised her eyebrow, sitting forward since this honestly shocked her. Zoey never asked for help, unless it was serious. Alicia stayed silent, letting Zoey move through her thoughts. ”I’ve never been in this position before. An opportunity basically fell in my lap…”

”Fell in your lap is a bit of an understatement. You earned that shit….” Alicia shot her a quick smile.

Zoey nodded slowly and took a deep breath before continuing. ”Yeah, maybe. But still, I’ve never been in this position before. I’ve fought for titles, I’ve had main events. I’ve done that but never on this scale. For a title this important.” Zoey stared off, as if going deeper into her thoughts. Alicia blinked a few times, not sure about what to do or say, if she should even say anything. ”I don’t want to screw this up. And as much as I hate to admit it, the only person I feel comfortable turning to…who has had this level of success…is you…”

”Well gee, thanks. Nice to know I’m so hard to approach, it’s not like we’re family or anything.” Alicia smirked and moved to the side, lightly pushing her shoulder into Zoey.

Zoey scoffed and shook her head looking away. ”I didn’t mean it like it sounded. It’s just really hard, asking anyone for advice or help. I’ve gone through my whole career…shit my whole life walking to the beat of my own drum.” She paused for a moment looking at Alicia and putting a small smile on her face. Alicia just stared back with a raised eyebrow. ”This opportunity though, it’s something special. There’s a pressure to perform and succeed that I’ve never felt before. And you succeeded through all that…I need to know how.”

”I have no idea what you’re talking about.” Zoey tilted her head, before she should say anything Alicia continued. ”I’m just fucking with you. I felt pressure going into every single big match I have ever had.”

”All of them? But, you’ve been in so many. You’re telling me this shit never gets easier? Like ever?”

Alicia chuckled and shrugged. ”Nope. Atleast not to me…or anyone else I’ve talked to. Not Austin, not Johanna, not Sierra, Miles, not even Alex and he’s been doing this a long long time. “ Alicia laughed and threw her hands in the air, Zoey seemed to relax a little, her shoulders dropping and she was suddenly able to breathe properly. ”We’ve all been there, and it’s not something you ever get comfortable with, and honestly…you shouldn’t.” Alicia paused and shook her head with a smile. ”Being nervous…wary of the pressure, aware of the weight and gravity of it all…it will keep you honest and real”

”Legit?” Zoey raised her eyebrows and let out a sigh, looking up to the sky she swallowed hard and then looked back down again. ”I wish Dad was here.” Alicia was surprised, that was somrthing she never expected to hear from Zoey. Zoey pushed off the ground, moving toward the back patio. Alicia followed, moving around to the side. ”He wasn’t the best, he wasn’t even close. But, he would have had something to say. Maybe even something good.”

”Yeah, maybe.” Alicia looked down and put her hands on the table leaning against it. Zoey stayed silent, she had no idea what else to say. ”He would have been proud.”

Zoey looked up and over. ”You think so?”

Alicia chuckled and stood up straight with a smile. ”Are you kidding?” He would have been the first one to call you. Or text. And he’d be running around telling all his ageing wrestling buddies that his “lil girl was gonna kick ass and be champion”...or something like that”

”That was a terrible impersonation of Dad…” Alicia laughed and nodded in agreement, Zoey laughed too, the mood finally lightening a little. ”But, thanks. I guess I needed to hear that.”

”Anytime.” Alicia moved to the side, reaching out and hiding Zoey tight, Zoey raised an eyebrow, struggled for a ,moment and then stopped. ”And….I’m proud of you to…so go get that title..” Zoey smiled and gave Alicia a small nod. She turned to go back inside. ”Or you’re out of the family.”

”What was that?”

”Nothing.”

Queen

”Giving me any type of power is a mistake.”

Zoey chuckles to herself. Her hair slicked back as she smirks, turning up her black painted lips.

”See, someone like me, while I will take what I want, when I want, I’ll also do things to just make me laugh. So when I realized I was in the Queen for a day match, I knew what I was going to do with that power when it came to. Well, me. But what was I going to do with the other matches? The rest of the power? Should I have given the remnants of Wolfslair scraps? Given Austin a shot at the world title? Or ask my sister if she wanted a shot at say, the Roulette or Internet title? Nah, I gave one person involved in Wolfalair a chance.”

“Laura Phoenix. A shot at the Internet title, because Laura earned it. She earned it by being a legend in this business and having a hand in training me…and many others.”

“So, I wanted to repay that, on behalf of myself, wolfslair and the wrestling world at large,”

“But what was I to do with the rest of my powers? Especially after I was told by both Mercedes and Tempest that I wasn’t going to win. Troll and BRADDOCK, and Raven vs GOTH. Why? Well, Why not? Those matches were for my own personal enjoyment, to have a laugh. See, when I was announced to have a shot at getting in the match, and when the Queen for a day was ready to go, all I heard was that I wasn’t going to win. In fact most of you had Tempest as the winner, cause she has beaten me before right? Or that Vargas would shock the world and regain former glories.”

She shrugs and gets to her feet, showing the sheer size that she had, the advantages with her athletic ability and god given physique.

”But, that isn’t what happened. I was able to stand up, and live up to all the potential. The people kept saying that they saw in me. And that really is a sticking point with me, all I keep hearing about his potential. That I have the potential to be a champion, that I have the potential to be one of the most dominant forces in this company. I get compare to my sister, my father, other larger, stronger women like tempest. But I never get looked at for me. And I’m going to change that. But, a lot of those people are also right in a way. I haven’t lived up to the potential that I have.”

“I have stumbled, fallen, but I have also stood back up. And while many people believe that I was all hype, I know the truth. For the last two years, I have been in this company, I have come in and out, getting a match here and there, and a chance, but then, for some reason not being used. so when an opportunity like this presents itself? I need to grab it with both hands and hold it. Hold it so tight I almost strangle it. See winning the Queen for a Day is like getting a blank check. Did anyone remember that movie? From the 90s? A kid find a blank check and writes on it and then goes on a spending spree?”

“That is what the Queen for a Day is. It is a chance, and a moment to write your own history. And in winning that I was always going to take a shot at the bombshells championship. Regardless of who ended up with that championship coming out of violent conduct, I was going to be going right for them.”

“And why wouldn’t I?”

“Why would I deny myself the chance of becoming a world champion? Anyone in my position would do the same. So, here we are. I have no doubt at all that Courtney knew this was coming. She’s not stupid. She knew Damm well, that if I won the Queen for a Day, I’d be coming for her. Just like Mercedes, Vargas would have, just like Tempest would have, just like Kim pain would have if she didn’t need to bow out of the match. Every single one of us would’ve been going for you Courtney and there is one reason for it. You are the best.”

She pauses, for dramatic effect, cause of course she does. Letting the words and realisation sink in.

”You are the champion. Because you hold that championship no one else can reasonably say that they are better than you. I think that is a fact that is missing in the professional wrestling business. The real respect for a champion. The fact that you are holding that championship means you are the only one in this company that has a right to say that they are the best professional wrestler in the world, or at least in Sin City wrestling. I can’t deny it, I can’t dispute it and to tell you, the truth, I wouldn’t want to. I’ve seen so many people win that championship and get torn down by stupidity. It shows a weak mind and a lack of respect for what that championship represents, and I’m not about to do the same damn thing.”

“See, this is something that even people close to me are guilty of. My own sister is guilty of it. You look at the history of that championship in the women have held it, and each one of them for a brief, second, was able to say that they were the best. From you, to my sister, to a woman, like Amber Ryan, who ran through the entire division, to someone like Roxi Johnson, who is a living legend, to her wife, Keira, who, so many people disrespect. Including my sister. But she two is able to call herself one of the best wrestlers to ever do it because she’s held that championship. And that Courtney is why I’m going for you. If you are in this business and you are not trying to become the champion then what the hell are you doing? You need to be the best, and if you don’t want to be the best? If you’re just in this to collect a paycheck? Then you don’t belong in a company like sin city wrestling.”


“But, I also know that that isn’t you. You wanted to get your hands on that championship and since you have you have been doing nothing, but trying to prove that you are the best. Even if your last championship defence was against someone who honestly didn’t deserve it, and yes, Ariana Angelos did not deserve a shot at your championship. She never had a chance to beat you. This is a woman who has failed in almost everything, she has ever done and refuses to take ownership of her values. That’s the exact opposite of me.”

“Every failure that I have had, every setback, every loss, I have learned from. I’ve excepted it. I’ve looked at my own weaknesses, and I’ve tried to come back, stronger every single time. And that makes me dangerous Courtney. It makes me the biggest threat to your championship reign that you have ever faced.”

“And that is both literal and figurative.”

“I am coming for that championship, and while you are, clearly, a worthy champion, and while everyone at jet city will be sitting there, cheering you on, wanting you to win, I have my own family to. I have everyone, and I mean everyone, at wolf slayer behind me. And those are two of the biggest gyms in the professional wrestling business. Full of champions, full of history, and you and I are just two of the newest products ready to roll on over it. I don’t think people realise the magnitude of this match. You and I Courtney, we are the future of this business. The future of the bombshells division. And a clash like this between us? I get a strange feeling that it’s just going to be the first of many. So I’m going to do everything that I can to take the championship from you.”

“Just like you will do anything to keep it…so I’ll see you there Court…Long live the queen.”

Independance

You step out on your own for the first time and the first thing you feel is fear.

Fear of the unknown. Fear of the future, fear of loss. After living in and under the umbrella and safety of a parent or institution for so long being by yourself can be utterly terrifying. Especially if you are unprepared and unsecured in your future.

Now, if that doesn’t sound like you, if the thought of independence from those institutions and parents is one of freedom, not fear, then…well…

Congratulations.

You had a healthy childhood and a healthy upbringing.

But being under that cloud, under that umbrella, a place where you are told repeatedly you will be safe and happy. And without them, well, you won’t be. Outside all of that is unsafe and dangerous, a real world full of pain, suffering and anger.

It is hard to pull away, hard to leave and hard to live your own life.

But it means more than you know, to walk away.

The meeting

Her hands were normally steady and unmoving. In fact it was something that she found pride in. Keeping her nerves calm through everything she had done and would do. In big moments of her life, through volleyball finals and school graduations and even huge debuts and moments in her wrestling career, Zoey Lukas was calm and measured. But not with this. Not right now. Her blond and black coloured hair was slicked back, her face covered in warmer makeup colours than her usual darker ones, she wore a pair of blacj jeans and a white and red slimk fitting top covered with a black leather jacket.

She watched the trees and houses fly by as she leaned against the leather seats in the back of the car, her left leg propped up with her left arm on her knee as her hand shook. She took in a deep breath and rubbed her hands together to try and calm them down, when a hand from her right came across and grabbed hers. The hand of Aron Baltasarsson.

He squeezed her hand and got her attention, he gave her a small smile and a nod, his short, wavy light brown hair and trimmed beard making him look as distinguished as ever along with his navy blue suit and white shirt. A contrast in style to Zoey. ”Are you alright?” Zoey gave him a nod in return and pushed out a breath, Aron laughed and shook his head before replying. ”I know that it’s bothering you Zo..”

She groaned and took a deep breath before looking back out the window and closing her hands around each other. ”I just know how annoying this whole thing will be. She thinks she’s right all the time, she thinks she knows whats best despite the fact she is usually wrong…she was wrong about Ali’s life and she’s wrong about mine…”

There was anger in Zoeys voice. A spitting venom that was on the tip of her tongue. Aron, fop his part gave her a nod and listened intently. But at the same time his eyes were soft and calm. He was the calming influence Zoey needed ”Mothers always do that Zoey, I’m sorry to say, you’re isn’t special or unique.” He chuckled and sat back looking at his watch and then back at Zoey. ”You need to realise that. You’ll never be happy unless you do. She isn’t trying to make your life harder for her sake, she believes shes right because it’s the only way she knows how to show affection…”

Zoey nods and throws her hands in the air, both understanding Arons point and being frustrated by it. She clears her throat and tries to stay calm in the conversation. ”I just don’t understand Aron. I don’t get why she can’t just say she loves me and if I’m happy then that is enough. Why does she have to write you off and beleive I’m incapable of maming choices to benefit myself?”

He laughed as they pulled up to the large stately home of Barbera Maxwell, the mother of the Lukas sisters. He reached over, grabbing her hand again and laughed. ”You dopon’t get it do you? No one will ever be good enough for you.”

Zoey raised her eyebrow. ”What?”

Aron leaned over, kissing Zoey on the lips softly and resting his hand on her cheek. ”It could be anyone. Me, your ex, a CEO of a fortune 5oo company or a guy who febricates engine parts in a factory, no matter the profession or background no one will ever be good enough for you in your mothers eyes…” He sits back and reaches out grabbing the door handle. ”Don’t take it personally Zoey…I’m not…”

As he got out of the car Zoey blinked as few times, the realization hitting her like a ton of bricks. She looked out at the door, her mother standing up the steps in front of it waiting as Aron moved around and opened Zoeys side, holding out his hand. Zoey laughed and shook her head taking it and stepping out before Aron offered her his arm, every instinct was telling her to just walk herself, but she softened, took his arm and walked up the steps. Her mother seemed to soften to, shocked Zoey let Aron be a gentleman. Zoey took a deep breathy and slosed her eyes before speaking.

”Mom, this is Aron Baltasarsson…”


The fall.

”Lady luck is a bitch, that is just the stone cold truth of all of it. The last match I had before into the void was ruined by luck. I want to be honest hereI am not a person who likes to make excuses.In fact when others make excuses it makes my stomach turn and usually brings a boiling anger up from deep down inside me.”

Zoey sneers, the light coloured makeup from the previous off camera scene now replaced on camera by the usual dark lipstick and eyeliner, a small black stripe across her cheek in a nod to her sisters “warpaint”

”Ariana was lucky. That’s it. I am someone who can face up to a loss and can admit when they have failed but Ariana didn't beat me comma she survived me full stop one on one everyone knows that I should have destroyed her,but because of an ill timed move and some steel steps I was robbed of the opportunity to realize my destiny and take my place in a match against one of the best this business has ever seen. I should have faced Roxi, I should have been the one to challenge her. The fact is Ariana should never have been in the position to rain man herself into the goddamn match.”

“And when given this opportunity, when dropped into a situation like this with a golden ticket placed on a silver platter right in front of her, what exactly did Ariana do with it? Did she seize it and take it with both hands and do everything she could to walk out of that show as the all conquering underdog champion? No of course not.She failed. She faced Roxi Johnson and she fell in a heap all because she knew going into it that she didn't deserve to be there and that she was not in any position to challenge a woman like her.”

“The sad fact is I should have been the one to face Roxi.”

“But where do I go from here? What is next for meI just had two opportunities slip right through my fingers. The blast from the past tournament was something that I was excited for especially with my partner.But we failed, we ended up in a position where we couldn't win, and after that the company and management saw enough in me to let me have another opportunity and that was taken away by the cruel hand of luck, fate,and the amusement of the masses…”

Zoey shrugs and shakes her head, disappointed in the answer.

”Well, the immediate answer to that question is Samantha Marlowe. Now, excuse me if I'm not excited about this match. I'm not sure why I ever would be.Sam is someone who I have already faced, who I have already beaten, and everything I said about her months ago is still relevant today.And everything she said about me? Well some of it is relevant and some of it never made a lick of sense.But what can she say different about me today? When she and I faced off last time I was an unknown quantity in Sin City wrestling.I was just the younger sister of Alicia Lukas,someone who was physically dominating for sure but no one knew what I was capable of.Sam was supposed to be my first big test.”

“It was a test I passed with flying colours.”

“But in the months since she and I last faced one another what has happened?I have gone from strength to strength competing in the blast from the past and getting opportunities, only to be beaten by the aforementioned luck and happenstance.Sam seems to have slowly stepped backwards further and further into obscurity and irrelevance.I remember before we faced one another last timeI went down her rap sheet of accomplishments and accolades. Her championship wins and biggest moments in this company.And after all of that I asked a very simple question.What have you done for me lately?”

“Well, what have you done for me lately Sam?”

Zoey rolls her eyes and shakes her head.

”You were able to beat Mercedes Vargas. Congratulations. Being able to beat one of your biggest rivals that you have faced a million times before must have felt liberating for you in some way. The only problem is neither you or Mercedes Vargas are the names that you believe yourselves to be anymore.I beat Mercedes right after I beat you. I put you both in your place and you two wheeled out the old school nostalgia act at into the void and you were able to walk away the winner after standing there and somehow telling the world that you were going to “solve the mystery” of Mercedes. Mystery? Are you kidding me? Sam you faced Mercedes a few times a year per year for the last decade. If you are still finding things to be mysterious about her then you really do not have any right to talk shit about anyone ever.”

“It did get me thinking. How exactly do you feel about me? Mercedes is someone who you have faced so many times you should know her like the back of your hand. Me though? While you have faced my sister and gone to war with her you've only faced me once.And yeah that one time I put you down and you felt what it's like to be in the ring with someone who's physically more dominant but what exactly do you think of me now?”

Am I the next big mystery that you hope to solve?”

“Who knows?But, do you know what you are to me?You are just a target. Someone that they are putting me up against so that I can re find my footing in this company and remind everyone what kind of monster they are dealing with.I made a horrible mistake going into that stupid tournament and I made an even bigger mistake when I allowed Ariana to get the better of me and go on to face Roxi. I am going to refuse right here and right now to make any mistakes that are going to cost me in my match against you. Not just because I need to re establish myself as a monster, not just because I need to start climbing that ladder again.But because I know, no matter how irrelevant you are right now and how much you are struggling you are still dangerous. You are still a veteran in this business who knows how to take advantage of anyone's mistakes.The only way you can beat me Sam, is if I first beat myself.And I'm not going to let that happen.”

Advice

Its never been a part of me to go out and find answers to my problems.

To ask questions over and over again, to try and get guidance when it comes to my future and my own directions. Its simply, not me. But sometimes we need to break those patterns.

What is the point of watching someone go through something, an experience, and then when you go through it you don’t approach them? Pick their brain?

Alicia and I aren’t perfect sisters. I have been away from her in times of need, she has been too focused on her own life. And if I had needed to ask her about all this a few weeks later, well, what she is going through now would have taken precedence over my bullshit. But at the time, I needed her. I needed to talk.

I needed to ask.

I needed to know everything. No matter how painful.

I guess part of me is happy, through our shared pain, trauma and talking about it, well. We bonded. And now…well..

Now I have my sister back.

Her past, and mine

Zoey took a breath, a deep one attempting to relax and calm herself. Looking down to the table in front of her, tilting her head and reaching out to the small glass filled with amber liquid. She took it down and closed her eyes as Alicia stepped in, putting a bottle in front of Zoey and laughing to herself. The hous ewas quiet.

Too quiet.

The boys weren’t home.

Ironically enough they were spending time with their grandmother. The same woman that had, in their minds, ruined their young lives. Alicia looked out into the backyard, watchi ng the sun go down as she held her glass to her chest after taking a sip. Zoey smiled and shook her head before asking the first question. ”How do you deal with moms bullshit?”

Instead of answering, Alicia simply laughs. Caught off guard but amused. ”Her bullshit? You can’t really…”deal” with it. Why?” She sat down across from Zoey, pouring them both another drink. Zoey leaned forward, her glass in her hand drinking half of it and wincing as it burned her throat.

”I told her about Aron.”[/color[] Zoey trailed off, Alicia stayed silent, looking at her sister and recognising just how big that was. Being patient and waiting as Zoey continued. ”She was…less than impressed. We got into it and I may have brought up what she put you through…the bullshit with Ronnie..”

Alicia looked down and took another drink, reliving everything she went through and was put through, nodding slowly. ”I…don’t blame Mom for that…she may have been the one who set it up, for her own reasons. But she didn’t know what he was like” She swallowed, Zoey nodded. ”But, I take it she wasn’t happy you hadn’t introduced her yet?”

Zoey chuckled shrugged. ”It’s almost like you know her or something.”

”And, if I had to guess. She brought up Michael…”

Silence.

Zoey sat back, mAlicia stayed staring ahead. They both took a drink and waited. Waited for the next part of the conversation. One that Zoey had never really talked about it or brought up. Finally, Alicia turned to her sister and swallowed before breaking the silence. ”What exactly happened between you two?”

She shook her head, pouring another drink and taking it down right away to loosen her lips. Zoey pushed up to her feet, moving around Alicia and leaning against the window. ”At first, Michael was amazing.” She shook her head and swirled her glass. ”He was supportive, charming, affectionate. He would always have my back…but as I fell for him more and more he just…”

”Changed…”

Alicia interrupted, but it was exactly what Zoey was thinking, what she was remembering. ”Yeah. He started being controlling, he’d get angry at the smallest things and suddenly I couldn’t see my friends, or family. He made me push you all away.”  Zoey swallows hard and looks to the side before continuing. ”I let it happen Ali. I let him take everything from me.” She put the glass down, her hands balling into fists as she tried to control the anger inside. ”And now, now I have fought back and found a good man, someone who makes me happy and Mom just treats me like…like”

”A stupid child? Still one that makes mistakes?”

Zoey swallowed again and gave a nod. Alicia laughed to herself and threw her hands in the air. ]color=limegreen]”I get it, I do. I made mistakes, but we all have and we all learn from them. I just wish she’d trust me…”

Alicia smiled warmly. She got to her feet and moved to her sister reaching out and patting her on the shoulders, reaching up to reach her bigger sisters arms. She then pulled Zoey forward into a hug and gave her a pat on the back before pulling backwards. ”To her, we’re both still little girls who have no idea what we’re doing. Not young women who have lived through pain.” She shook her head and laughed under her breath. ”You wanted my advice on her? So…here it is…” Alicia backed away with a wry smile.

”Ignore her…..it’s the worst thing you can do to someone who craved control and needs attention…live your life Zo….be happy…”

Round 2

”Well then. What an interesting turn of events hmmm? Kind of disappointing really…”

Zoey folds her arms over her chest and sneers.

”See, even though Joe and I won and we get to move on to the quarter finals, the way it happened was hardly the stamp of authority we wanted. See, Joe held up his end of the bargain and we got the win, but Krystal gets to actually think she was in any way, shape or form better than me. And why? Why does she get to do that huh? Because of Tempest, because she had to make her return and get her hands on Krystal.”

“It’s not enough that Tempest stalled my momentum with a win over me and then just disappeared, now she has to get involved in my Blast from the past match all because she had an issue with Krystal? One that couldn’t have waited? And for what? Where is Tempests grand revenge? So now, Krystal gets to strut around and act like she somehow has a misguided bullshit moral victory over me….”

“Thanks Tempest…”

“But, here we are. The next round in the tournament and Joe and I get to face the team of a former SCW world champion and a woman who has actually won this tournament in Courtney Pierce.”

“So, to say this is a step up in competition from Casey Williams and Krystal Wolfe is an understatement.”

She tuts and shrugs before continuing.

”Joe showed the world that he is every bit as awesome and impactfulo i9n SCW as he has been in other companies all around the world. And it’s something he’s going to continue when he gets in the ring with “Godly” Ken Davison. That is, if Ken gets in the ring and wrestles Joe instead of running like he has from every other credible challenge that came his way. Legit, I have seen some really shitty world champions in various companies in my time but Ken?...come on..”

“I get it, we should all show the old man some respect, with his forty year career that lasted four times as long as his hairline, the fact he has been able to be a world champion while looking like one of those hairless cats, complete with sagging skin…”

“What I’m trying to say is. Ken Davison is old as fuck…”

“And he took the SCW world title and started it’s latest downward spiral. He beat Mac, lost it to Finn, beat Finn, lost it back to Mac. Rinse and repeat. How incredibly boring. And now, this old fart has a chance to win this tournament and punch his ticket to face whoever the world champion is by the time the tournament ends. And I don’t know about Y’all but the prospect of the Ken Davison threepeat fluke fest doesn’t really get my juices flowing if you get my drift…”

She shrugs again and paces back and forth.

”So, it is up to Joe and me to stop that lunacy. But, while I know that Joe is more than a match for Kenny the bald grumpy cat, I know I have to face off against Courtney Pierce. And, you know, part of me thinks that maybe, just maybe Court is better than she’s letting on. See, I could come out here and say that she got carried to a Blast from the past win by Fenris but she and I know that in this tournament that simply isn’t true.”

“People don’t get carried in this tournament it is a partnership and you either succeed as partners or fail as partners and Courtney succeeded with Fenris and now she could succeed with Ken.”

“But, to what end?”’

“I’m in this company week in and week out, grinding and pushing myself each week and each event to get better and to be a rising star. Joe is a legend in the business and has been competing everywhere, he could be a huge get for SCW to stay here, but Courtney? What can we expect of Courtney Pierce? If she and Ken lose I can say right now that she’ll be gone again, out of the company waiting for another year to throw her name in the hat to try her hand again…”

“But what if she and Ken win?”

“I already gave you all a sneak peak at the crap we will all have to put up with if Ken wins. He could lose, or even worse, win the title and make it an even bigger joke. But what of Courtney Pierce? Do any of you actually think she can go on to beat Roxi? Or whoever the champion is? Courtney, despite training at Jet City you just never quite made it to that level that you thought you should.”

Her voice lowers into a growl.

”All this time in and out of SCW, all the statements and training and the great people you’re connected to and what exactly do you have to show for it? A blast from the past win five years ago and a string of people talking about your potential. But, potential only gets you so far Court. If, after the string of matches and wins I have had in SCW against goddamn bonafide legends and hall of famers, I am still being looked at as a “potential” champion and the “future” in five years….then I should just leave and not come back…”

“That is where you’re at.”

“A crossroads. Put up or shut up. But, if you lose in the tournament then what will you do huh? Will you walk away? Or stay in SCW and keep chasing that potential. Cause realising it, climbing that ladder and grinding. It’s about more than just coming in once a year to try your hand at a damn shortcut. And that is the biggest issue with you. I see this as an opportunity to earn my way to a match no one has ever seen before.”

“For you?...this is your once a year grasping at straws for relevance. It didn’t work in the queen for a day last year and it ain’t going to work in the blast from the past Court…I’ll do everything to make sure of it…”

The fuck is her problem?

Zoey was moving back and forth, stomping as she does. A loud exasperated groan escaped her lips as more visible signs of frustration appeared. But sitting at the table, slowly sipping on a coffee was Aron. In his other hand was his ipad, his thumb flicking down through whatever he was reading.

Zoey kept pacing.

She pulled out her phone, sending off another text message before tapping her foot impatiently, her phone buzzed, she read it and groaned again, her head shooting back and up to the cieling as her shoulders slumped down and her whole body seemed to go limp. Frustration was creeping in, maybe even anger. And finally Aron gave her a reason to tell him…and run her mouth.

”Something on your mind?”

Her shoulders went back, her back straightened and her chest pushed forward. ” So, I went with Violet to get the boys from school right? Like I hadn’t seen Rory or Ryan in a bit and wanted to do the cool aunt thing…” Zoey paced around, her phone waving in her right hand as she growled under her breath. Aron raised an eyebrow and set his ipad down to turn on the chair and face her.

Zoey took a deep breath, looking at her phone at the message she had received and letting out yet another groan and a growl. ”And…did something bad happen? Did you two get into a fight?....cause if you did then Kristjan would probably want to take bets..” Zoey scoffed and laughed under her breath before shaking her head and moving around to sit across from Aron, the contrast was interesting.

Aron was clean cut, dressed in casual yet smart clothes, Zoey on the other hand was in a pair of black jeans with pre tears and a long sleaved black spartan brand shirt. ”Nah nothing like that, Rorys teacher introduced himself. His original teacher had to bounce with a family emergency right?. So this guy comes out and introduces himself and he’s kinda cute, no wedding ring and kinda seemed…I dunno…into her?” Zoey shrugged and took a deep breath.

”Ok…so…whats the issue exactly?”

Zoey threw her hands in the air and groaned. ”She’s being a pain in te ass about it. First being dismissive, and now making excuses!...”

Aron leaned forward and tilted his head. ”Excuses?” He was legitimately confused, Zoey shook her head and her heart dropped.

”That even if he is interested she isn’t. Apparently she’s just like…not ready to even entertain this. She’s been divorced for a year and a half…” She grabs a bottle of water popping the top off and taking a sip. ”She’s lonely, I can see it, she has the boys, she has everyone at the gym but as far as someone to go home to?...it’s not there..”

Aron gave a small nod as Zoey drank some more water and stared off. ”You’re annoyed that she isn’t even entertaining the idea?...that in your eyes she is..self sabotaging her happiness?”

”Yes…that…all of that…EXACTLY THAT.”

Aron cleared his throat, finished his coffee and then reached across the table grabbing Zoeys hand and looking into her eyes. ”I get it, I do. I went through something similar with m,y brother. But, no matter how much you care about someone and are trying to be a good sister…you have to back up a bit…”

Zoey interjected. ”But I just-”

Aron put a finger up on his free hand. ”How would you have felt if Alicia had tried to push you into a relationship with me before you were ready?..”

”Annoyed…I guess..”

”Exactly..” Aron smiles wide squeezing her hand. ”She’ll be ready when she is ready, you’ll see the signs and then…and only then…can you try and help her. If not, all you’re going to do is push her away and annoy her…so I know it’s hard…but back off for now..”

Zoey took a deep breath, closing her eyes and then giving a small nod before opening them and looking at her phone. ”Alright…I’ll try it YOUR way….for now..”

Gatekeeping

”Y’all know what this is?”

Zoey slowly holds up a key. Just a generic silver key, nothing special about it. Nothing ornate or beautiful. Just a key.

”Keys unlock things, chests, windows, doors and gates. And this, well this is basically what I have been put as now. A key. A kay to the rest of the division. Apparently Jessie Salco was busy because instead of her welcoming this, random new girl. It’s me. And hey, I’m no stranger to feasting on fresh meat, but over the last few months I have built a reputation and aura. I have faced both those new to this company as well as hall of fame names and so called “legends” And I have come out on top in every single match except one. One person in SCW has been able to take me out one on one…everyone else has fallen before me.”

“In fact, last time y’all saw me do you remember what I did? Who I beat? Cause I sure as shit do. I went out to that ring and I faced Mercedes Vargas. Former bo,bshells world champion, former bombshells tag team champion, mixed tag team champion, roulette champion, internet champion and in 2018 became a member of the SCW hall of fame. And when she stepped in the ring with me I destroyer her…”

“Amazing isn’t it. So, after beating a woman like her, where was I going to go? Who was I going to face?”

“Well, imagine my surprise when I see my name opening climax control against a woman having her first match in SCW, while the woman who I just beat, who then went on to fail to win the internet title…for a second time, is in a triple threat match where the winner gets to go against Amber Ryan one on one. Wow. And SCW wonders why it’s hard to build new stars and why their bombshells world title scene has become stagnant.”

Zoey scoffs and shakes her head, some of her hair falling down over her eyes as she lets out a deep breath, visibly frustrated.

”Even my own sister says she doesn’t deserve to be in that match, so you have Alicia telling the world she didn’t earn shit, you have Mercedes Vargas somehow failing UPWARDS and then you have me stuck in a match against cindy luwhoever the fuck….”

“I have been sitting back, beating everyone and anyone that SCW puts in front of me. And I get rewarded by having a match like this while others who stars have faded get preferential treatment. And why? Why does Vargas, a woman I beat get handed all these opportunities? Why does my sister get handed shit she doesn’t even want and why does Roxi Johnson get featured above me? Go ahead, answer thoise fucking questions with lame excuses..”

“You want to know why it happens? In my eyes? Cause SCW would rather stay with the status quo in the bombshells division than risk the clustewrfuckery that happens in the world title scene on the mens side. Having that title play hot potato. They don’t want that here, so they stick to the same old same old. Cause I’ll be straight up here. Amber Ryan can whoop Vargas, Alicia and Roxi…cause we’ve seen her do it before….”

“You know what we haven’t seen before?”

Zoey pops up, standing tall, reminding us all just how big she is.

”Amber face me. And hey, we might not ever see that, as I am continually passed up for has beens and women closer to the end of their career than anything approaching relevancy. So now, I have to face this Cindy Halsey woman. Someone making her SCW debut. And sure, you could look at that as a disadvantage because I have no idea what I’m getting into. But, this skinny little blonde bobblehead from West hollywood is in trouble.”

“You see Cindy, this is the ultimate case of wrong place, wrong time, wrong girl.”

“As you have no doubt noticed based on my ultra bubbly demeanor, I am in a certain mood. See, as I outlined, I have been looked over and passed up in favor of my own sister, who didn’t want the shot, and two has beens who need to pack it up and retire. And in this ultimate show of disrespect I got thrown against you…”

“So, tell me, what am I to do with you? Hmm? What should happen to Cindy Halsey?”

“I’ll tell you. You appeared on SCW tv and cut a five second promo about signing your SCW contract and how you want competition and money. Well, I have some good news and bad news for you Cindy. The good news is, if you turn up, you’ll get paid. Win or lose. The bad news, well, competition, there will be no competition between us.”

Zoey scoffs and shakes her head again trying not to laugh.

”You look at me, and then at you, and it’s like we’re not even the same species. You are a skinny little bottle blonde who would look way more at home on a porn set waiting for your next gangbang scene to start than a wrestling ring. And I look like, and very well could, end you. I can take you, snatch you up and break you in half and the sad fact is…I now have to do it…”

“The disrespect SCW has shown me has to be answered and I have to take it out on somebody Cindy. So, as I said…wrong place…wrong time…”

“Wrong…girl..”

Relationships

We are often forged and changed by the relationships we make. The people we meet and how we relate to them and how they relate to us. You learn from people, let them influence you whether you know it or not. Sometimes for the better, sometimes the worse. And unfortunately I’ve known both.

I know what it’s like to have people in your life that are a positive influence.

But I also know the most nagative of the negative.

I know what it’s like to be in a relationship with someone who changes you, makes you a completely different person and makes you lose everything unique and special about yourself. Someone who tries to mold you into something to fit their needs, wants and narrative. And it has always begged the question. Why? Why change people when you are attracted to the person you meet at first, as you know them and need them and want them? Only for you to want them to become something completely different.

You lose yourself. Lose who you are little by little. Until one day you wake up, look in the mirror and don’t recognise the person staring back at you.

The morning that happened, I realised I needed to get out. I needed to leave and not look back. No matter how much it hurt. And the worst part about living through things like this, living through those toxic relationships. Is finding that same toxicity in people you care about and their relationships. Watching them slowly morph and become different people because of the others that they’re with. And knowing that sometimes there is nothing you can do about iut.

Sure, you can tell them they’re changing, that the person they’re with isn’t good for them. But speaking from personal experience I know it doesn’t work. If you push and shove and tery and get your point across, you’ll push those same people away. You will make them resent you even if you’re completely right and correct. And that is the last thing you want to do when you care about someone.

My sister was smart enough to see this, even if my mother wasn’t.

You see, a relationship is the reason I ran. The reason I disappeared from my family, my friends and the profession I had only just started to become good at. It was a guy. I know. Pathetic i9sn’t it? My mother pushed, she shoved, she told me he was wrong for me and that I was no longer tha same girl she raised. And all I did, was run.

Alicia followed but stood far enough away not to make it worse. She told me as long as I was happy, she was happy.

And that was the phrasing I needed. Cause deep down in my heart, everytime I woke up in the morning, I wasn’t happy. I wasn’t even close. And it took some time, two years as a matter of fact, to see through the bullshit and realise I needed to leave. I needed out.

That was a relationship that ruined me, that I should never have been in. But, the relationships today, the people I need and have in my life?...they’re what I need, what I want.

And they make me happy.

Is it a date?

It was interesting, being in India. It was a lovelty country, the people were ectstic about a wrestling product coming to their country and touring. Everywhere they went, there was happiness and excitement. People thanking them for their shows, people wanting autographs and wanting to ask questions. It was the type of thing Zoey wasn’t used to. Something that she had needed to ask Alicia about. But, here they were, before the Jaipur show and Zoey was standing in her hotel room, her hands moving and gliding across the bathroom counter as she found her lipstick.

She stared at herself in the mirror, her hair was slicked back, her eyeliner applied, eyeshadow to match with a foundation that accentuated her pale skin and high cheekbones. She moved the lipstick across her lips, smacking them together before taking a deep breath staring at herself in the mirror, leaning in the look closer, dabbing her finger across her top lip to even out the black makeup.

She leaned back, her body covered in her black dress, a slit up either side and studs to show off her leg.

The bathroom door clicked, Alicia stepped in and shook her head looking at her younger sister. Zoey didn’t even notice her, instead turning to make sure everything that needed to be covered was covered,. The low cut of the dress being held together by tape, friction and hopes and dreams. She chuckled and gave herself a nod before finally noticing Alicia, dressed in grey sweatpants and a black “Trivium” t-shirt, with her arms folded over her chest. Zoey stopped and tilted her head waiting for anything from her sister.

Alicia cleared her throat and looked Zoey up and down. ”A dress huh?” There was alot of shock and awe in her voice. Alicia smiled, Zoey turned up her nose and shrugged moving past Alicia who followed her. Zoey looking from side to side for her shoes. ”I don’t think I’ve seen you in a dress since you were like…12”

Zoey scoffed, finding her shoes and placing them down in front of her. ”I’ve worn dresses before, I’ll wear them again, there’s no reason to act so shocked.”

Alicia put her hands up, shaking her head with a smile. ”Hey I’m not judging, you look good Zo…but uh…gotta question why you’re going to all this trouble for a friendly dinner…with a friend….a friend who is in a relationship..”

Zoey did the second strap up on her shoe, standing up straight, wearing high heels to make her alreadt lengthy frame seem even larger. The intention was to be looked at and it was something Zoey had become very good at. ”Are you done? She raised her eyebrows and shook her head. ”Or is there something else?”

Alicia bit her lip and clenched her hands into fists, Zoey nodded and grabbed her purse, Alicia finally speaking up as Zoey started to head toward the door. ”I just don’t want you to get hurt.”

”Hurt?”

Alicia stepped toward Zoey, reaching out and grabbing her arms, looking up into Zoeys eyes. ”Look, I like Miles. I do. But he is still with..whats her face. And he might not see this the same way you do. And besides that, we train with him, we work with him…there’s an old saying Zo…you don’t shit where you eat.”

”Gross..”

Alicia groans and throws her arms up in the air. ”Focus….you get what I mean. To you this could be a date, to him it’s just a friendly dinner..don’t..ya know…get your hopes up”

There is a moment of silence between them, Alicias heart sank as she thought maybe, just maybe she just broke her younger sisters heart. Instead, Zoey burst out with laughter. She doubled over, her large arms wrapping around her midsection as Alicia looked confused. ”Oh, oh that’s precious.” She waved her hands and checked to see if her makeup was still set. ”This isn’t a date…this is just me and Miles going to dinner and I’m goin to show him there’s more fish in the sea…and much much better looking ones…”

Zoey couldn’t help but laugh and shake her head. ”So you’re not like…falling for a taken guy?”

”We’re consenting adults. I am well within my rights to go out to dinner with a friend and look damn good while doing it…” Alicia sighed and nodded, the weight lifting off her shoulders as Zoey scoffed. ”And Miles is well within his right to take the bait and make a bad decision that could end his relationship with the little video game developing psycho hose beast…” Alicia smile faded, she blinked a few times with her jaw open, she had no idea what to say, what to feel. Zoey grabbed her purse moving toward the door before putting her hand up and waving behind her. ”Don’t wait up…”

Takin down a legend

”So, a step up in competition then.”

Zoey Lukas, slowly moved her arms across her upper body, folding them over as she slowly smiled and tilted her head. Her hair moving down over her eyes, her opper body covered in a sleeveless black suicide silence shirt.

”Before I get into the nitty gritty of how I feel about my match this week I feel the need to get a few things off my chest. Now, there’s no secret I don’t like Tag matches. I teamed with my sister and I was able to grin and bare it. I teamed with Miles and had the added enjoyment of being able to stare at his ass while we were in the ring, but all in all, I don’t like relying on anyone except myself. With that being said I’m not real fond of the narrative that SCW is pushing with this week and the story that I’m still “undefeated”...”

“Let me be clear, I understand I have not been pinned, I have not submitted, I have not been knocked out, counted out or given up. I understand that it was Miles who got pinned in our tag match. And I even understand why SCW is doing this…”

“I’m a future star.”

“Christian and Mark look at me and dollar signs go off. I’m marketable. I’m from a wrestling family, a second generation star along with my older sister whose career has already meant more than our fathers ever did, I have the look, the natural ability and the skill set to become one of the best and bring eyes and money to the product. So this whole “Zoey hasn’t been pinned” thing is going to be the story they run with. But it’s not the one I run with.”

“Miles and I lost.”

“We lost as a team. We lost at the same time and I know Miles feels bad, he felt so bad he offered to take me out to dinner and I will tell you all the same thing I told him. This isn’t about who got pinned, in those matches you both take the load. You win together you lose together and when the final bell tolled and the other team had their hands raised he and I both felt the same sting of defeat. And if SCW wanted to go with the narrative they have, then why would they book me in a tag match to begin with?”

Zoey simply shrugs and moves along.

”So now, I get to show the world what I can do as I get a step up in solo competition. I get to go toe to toe with a woman who has quite the history in this company and I have been told time and time again that to get a real feeling of gravity when it comes to wrestling you need to appreciate your opponents for who they are, not tear down who they are and try and belittle their accomplishments. Cause when you beat someone who real accolades, then those accolades become a part of your history. And when I see Sam Marlowe, I see real history.”

Zoey steps to the side, moving back and forth taking a deep breath.

”And what a history. 2017 Blast from the past runner up, former Mixed tag team champion, a four time Roulette champion and a two time bombshells champion all capping it off with an induction in the Sin city wrestling hall of fame last year. I mean, we should all be so lucky as to have a career in this company like that Samantha. And hell, maybe one day I can look back at my career and i’ll have just as many titles and moments to my name. Or, I might fail. But all I know is that in wrestling it’s always a case of what have you done for me lately. And I have to ask Samantha…what have you done for me letely?”

“What have you done for the company lately? See, you and a few others just haven’t seemed to push yourselves, you’ve plateaued. It’s happened toi you. It’s happened to Mercedes Vargas, it’s happened to Seleana and Crystal, it has even happened to an extent to my own sister.”

“And shit I can admit that even if she, and the rest of you refuse to admit it to yourselves. And that’s why I’m here Samnatha. See I don’t want to beat the Sam Marlowe we’ve had over the last few years. The new Sam, the girl scout Sam.”

“The new Samantha Marlowe fucking sucks.”

“I want the Samantha Marlowe that got inducted into the hall of fame. I want the Samantha Marlowe that took Mercedes Vargas to the limit and beat her ass over and over again, I want the same Marlowe who would go to war with anyone and everyone in an effort to prove she was and is the best. I want the old Samantha Marlowe.”

Zoeys voice raises and she laughs to herself pacing back and forth even more.

”I want that Samantha Marlowe because I want to be able to say I beat one of the best, I want to say I beat a two time world bombshells champion and a hall of famer. I want to be able to get in the ring with the best version of you Sam. And I don’t want to do it for some kind of misplaced need for a challenge. Nah. I want to beat the best Sam Marlowe so when the dust is settled and I look you in the eye I can see the sheer horror and terror that will go through your mind when you realise the wrestling world has passed you by…because not only are you not on my level…Sam…I’m playing a whole different game than you…”

“As good as you used to be, as good as you think you are this is a new dawn and a new era in SCW and the bombshells division. For the longest time women like Roxi, Keira, Mercedes, Seleana, Crystal and you have hung around SCW enjoying your glory days. And while Roxi is the only one as of late who has shown she is still the best of the best the rest of you kind of hang around SCW like a bad smell…”

“And I am going to end it. I am going to collect those scalps and earn my way to that Bombshells title.”

“My ambitions are not in any way held back by a lack of drive or talent. And I also refuse to be kno0wn as the lesser talented Lukas sister. So you are a step up in competition Sam and you will be a real guage of my progress. And hell, I could be wrong, you still might have it, the best Sam Marlowe may indeed still be in there, deep and buried inside. And that Sam might be able to beat me….”

“Or…I’m right…”

“I’m right and I am going to steamroll over you and leave you in a beaten and bloody heap. And in one night you can do something for the wrestling business that is selfless and will be more significant and relevant than anything else you have done in the last two years…by showing the world Zoey Lukas…is a new star…”

World of change

Change is a part of life. No matter what we do, where we go, nothing in our lives is permanent. People change, relationships change and evolve. The past you had even changes. You remember things differently based on the context you need at the time.

This is all natural. It’s a natural aspect of the world we live in and who we all are deep down.

I hate change.

I’ll be the first one to admit it, when something changes and it’s not my doing or my choice I get angry, frustrated. I lash out and act childish. It’s something I need to work on. Many people have told me it’s a side effect of my youth. Shit my mom even told me that Alicia used to be the same way.

My sister has had to deal with so much forced change in her life I question how she does it. How she goes on. Part of me looks at her in awe with great respect and admiration. But shh, don’t tell her that. It’ll give her a giant ego.

But sometimes, when the idea for change is one you have for yourself, something that you can look inside yourself and realize you need. Then balance can be restored.

It took something as simple as a change of scenery to really kickstart my career in a positive direction. This was a direction taken and walked by my own design. Alicia has no idea it was something I wanted. She had no idea it was something I desired and needed. So when I asked her to get me into Wolfslair, well, I heard the surprise in her voice.

But that was nothing compared to my first day, and the surprises in store….

The Arrival

Alicia seemed nervous. Her hands gripping the black steering wheel of her 2019 Honda Civic. She turned into the large parking area next to Wolfslair new york, the large warehouse that seemed to overtake the sky above. She came to a stop and closed her eyes taking in a deep breath before turning to Zoey.

Zoey smiled, excited as a kid on her way to a new theme park. Her leg bounces up and down impatiently as if with a twitch that she couldn’t control.

Alicia shook her head and smiled, amused with the fact Zoey was excited to get back to work. Happy that she was able to open this door for her younger sister who, for the longest time now had let her once promising wrestling career stay stagnant and almost die. But not now, not they were going to resurrect that career together.

”You ready for this?” Zoey raised an eyebrow and folded her arms mover chest, Alicia just shrugged and reachedover pulling the handle to open the door. ”I was just asking…” The sisters got out, moving around to grab their gear bags. It was still early, brisk in the morning. Despite the fact we were into the beginning of summer. The air was calming and still, Alicia looked over as the large roller door started to rise up.

Zoey threw her strap over her shoulder pulling down the boot of Alicias car as she watched The door rise, and on the other side was Austin James Mercer, his hands wrapped around the chain pulling down in a steady motion . As he finished raising the door he looked over at Alex Jones, his hand up on his shoulder as if he had done something to it, Austin has a disapproving look on his face and shook his head mouthing something to Alex before looking outside seeing the Lukas sisters giving them both a nod.

Zoey had never met Austin, only heard about him in passing, seeing him on the television. Alex she had met a few years prior, but was not close with the owner of the gym that had taken the wrestling world by storm. ”My god Austin is fucking huge…”

Alicia started toward the main building thew sound of gravel crunching under her white sneakers being much louder than you’d expect. ”To be fair, most people probably think that when they first see you…”

Zoey grumbled and started after her sister. ”Oh fuck you…”

Alicia laughed and moved to the steps running up to the small landing before nodding to Austin who gave her a small nod back, Zoey came up to and stopped in front of Austin, Austin towered over Zoey, but not as much as he did other members of the gym. Austin raised an eyebrow and looked Zoey up and down with a smile. ”You must be Alicia’s younger sister…the new recruit right?” Zoey gave him a slow nod and a smile, she had been warned that Austin was not his usual self. A personal tragedy had destroyed his humor and usual kind heart. ”Welcome aboard, but, and I know this is weird coming from someone who looks like me…muscles don’t get you as far as you’d think…”

Zoey raised an eyebrow and gave a nod ”Understood…..thanks for having me?...I guess?” Austin just shook his head and moved back toward the office area where Alex was shuffling through paperwork. Zoey moved through the doorway and looked around, her jaw dropping as she realized the scope of the place she was now going to train in. Two practise rings, grappling mats, a weight room, lines of punching bags, a sauna and ice baths for recovery, a media room. It was all here. ”Holy shit…”

Alicia moves around to her side, her hands finding her hips as she sighed heavily. Around them the gym slowly started to come to life. Aiden Reynolds kicked the grappling mats over, rolling them and pushing them across the floor to set them up. Johanna Kreiger was wiping the ropes down and over in the corner a young man was moving the weights back in place. Zoey stopped in her tracks and cleared her throat. Alicia blinked a few times turning her head.

”Who the fuck is that?”

Zoey tilted her head as the guy bent over to pick up a weight bar, moving it to the side and then stretching as he stood back up. ”Who?...Him? That’s Miles Kasey, joined Wolfslair a while ago, he’s from somewhere in the UK…why?” Zoey just started and bit her bottom lip. ”Zo?....Zoey?...hello?..oh wonderful I’m being ignored..”

Zoey tilted her head and stepped toward him as Al;icia followed. ”I could bounce a quarter off those British Brioche Buns..”

”ZOEY!”

The taller Lukas sister seemed to snap out of it ”What?...did I say that out loud?” Alicia just stared at her younger sister, putting a finger up and her jaw slightly open thinking of something, anything to say. But Zoey was a few steps ahead as she just smiled. ”Hey don’t worry, I’m here to train and get better first…I can worry about getting laid on my own time.” Zoey slapped her sister on the shoulder and turned toward the locker rooms.

”No that’s…that’s not what I was going to say…Zoey….ZOEY!” She followed her sister into the lockerooms as a completely oblivious Miles went about his business.

Kicking Cousins.

”How do we do this?”

”Do what?”

”This….this whole thing…”

”Cutting a promo?”

Zoey shot her sister an angry look, Alicia shrugged with a small laugh under her breath. She turned toward the camera side with a sigh and her arms folding over her chest.Zoey stepped back and did the same.

”Do you all see it now? What my sister is capable of? I think Jessie Salco feels it. And hey, I know what most of you are thinking.A win over Jessie Salco isn’t really headline news is it? Everyone has beaten Jessie. I’ve beaten Jessie, Johanna beat Jessie, Roxi has beaten Jessie, Amber has beaten Jessie, Zoey has beaten Jessie, good taste has beaten Jessie. But the fact remains, the entire wrestling world has now seen a small glimpse of what Zoey is capable of and where she can go in this business. And, as much as I shit on Jessie, well, she’s more of a challenge than Ruby.”

“But hey who am I to talk right? I just lost to a woman who I have spent the better part of three years holding down under my boot. And now, due to one slip up she gets to walk around with her chest puffed out acting like because she beat me once she’s somehow better than me?”

“Is that how it works?”

Alicia pauses and shakes her head, Zoey interjects, stepping forward.

”No, no it’s not. See, I can be damn proud over my debut win, the first time I’ve been seen in a real match and I dominated a veteran. Sure, it’s not a veteran that many people take seriously. At all. But still, veteran status. But the way this whole thing works is that you show a history of dominance and winning and you should get respected for it. People like my sister don’t come around often, you take away all the fluke wins where she hasn’t been pinned in multiperson clusterfucks and the tag losses and Alicia is damn scary. But you all seem to forget that.”

“And what, Mercedes Vargas wins her one match this quarter and we’re all meant to forget that Alicia has beaten her across three different companies like a goddamn dog for the last three or four years? We’re supposed to look past that? See, Jessie and Mercedes have the same problem. They win something, it’s the biggest thing in the world and we should all congratulate them. But they lose and it’s forgotten, because they don’t learn anything.”

“But, Alicia lost to Mercedes, she knows it, feels it, embraces it and learns from it. And she has taught me to do the same. Win or lose, something can be learned.”

“And we are about to teach Diamond and Ruby Steele a lesson they will never forget and the first lesson is a simple one. Never put your future in the hands of people who have the will to shape it. See, we win this tag match and Alicia gets to select what type of match Diamond will have to compete in at Summer Xtreme. And I think we can all agree, giving her any type of control is a bad idea. It’s why so many people were terrified Alicia was going to win the Queen for a day. And unlike Amber Ryan..Alicia wouldn’t have let Diamond get away with chucking a sick day to get out of her contractually obligated appearances..”

Zoey chuckles and slides her hands into the front pockets of her tight fitting black jeans.

”But, not only did Diamond talk herself into a beating she has decided to bring her cousin along to the party. And honestly I am shocked Ruby agreed to this. I want you all to think back to Violent Conduct last year. I told the world I was going to annihilate Ruby Steele and in a glass tables match that is exactly what happened. And it has taken Ruby almost a year to get up the confidence to face me again and it wasn’t even because of her. But you remember it, don’t you Ruby?”

“You remember pulling shards of glass from your back, you remember the pain you went through as you were stitched up and put back together after what I did to you.”

“You think that was hard for me? You think I rate you as one of my biggest rivals after that?”

“I don’t. I don’t think you or Diamond belong in wrestling anymore. I think you two, Sapphire and Emerald need to just go about being a band. Not because you’re better musicians than you are professional wrestlers, but because if you fail at playing music it won’t end yopur existence like wrestling will. See, this business needs devotion, it needs effort, it needs people willing to learn. To get better and improve. And you Ruby, you and your cousin don’t have that in you. You don’t belong in the ring with us…”

Alicia smiles and looks back up at her sister. Zoey paces back and forth like a caged animal.

”The hardest thing about this tag match is that I will have to hold back. See, I have no doubt in Diamond and Ruby Steeles minds this is some kind of amazing family tag team match. A great wrestling family like the Steeles against a great wrestling family like ours. Our father was a wrestler. Someone we barely knew, barely saw. We don’t even use his last name in the ring. The Lukas name is just….a show name…”

“Much like Steele.”

“But, Alicia has set the wrestling world on fire and me? Well I’m just getting started.”

“Ruby is out of practise and Diamond, well, you haven’t meant anything to this business since you forgot your name was Kate. See, Kate Steele held some kind of respect in this business. But you Diamond? What do you have? No one likes you, no one respects you. You lucked into a title win and when push came to shove you folded really fast and lost that title faster than Jessie Salco loses credibility when she tweets.”

“You have had chance after chance after chance to claw back some of that good will and respect yet you fail each and every time. This business needs more people like my sister, more people like me. And less like you two jokes. You want to be musicians so bad? You bargain basement Josie and the pussy cat paramore obsessed wannabes. Your music sucks, your look sucks and your wrestling sucks.”

“Alicia and I are going to enjoy tearing you limb from fucking limb and when all is said and done Alicia gets to choose what circle of hell to drag you to Diamond….and I will just sit back and laugh…”

The recap

A year can change alot. A year an entire human being can be conceived, grown and birthed. An entire year can change everything. And what a year it had been in the life of Sierra Williams. She had been safe and secure in SCW. She had her position, she was making money to support her family. But something was missing. Something had been lost in the years she had been in the company. Not that she wasn’t thankful. SCW had increased her profile, made her a star.

But the fire had been put out,

She needed to find it, to recapture it. So, she left. She walked from the company that had helped her remember what wrestling was. Through WWH and DIVISION she had honed her skills but SCW had been the first company she felt at home with. And to leave was painful. But it was a change that was needed. And in the last year, refocused on who she was and what she was capable of, Sierra had flourished.

She had become a world champion, dominating the opponents and competition, anyone who stepped up to her Sierra put down with a ruthless attitude and no remorse. A woman who had remembered what she was capable of in PWS Apex. But the professional ups had been mixed in personal lows. While in the wrestling world she had it all, the face of a company that was growing, the world title, the record for longest reign and a high profile position at the Orlando office of Wolfslair her personal life had been suffering.

Her father got sick and passed away, the man who trained her, who fostered and grew her love for professional wrestling and who had always been there faded from a strong, smart, funny man full of wisdom and guidance to a broken husk, an empty shell. And she had been the one left to organize it all, to pick up the pieces and put all of her own pain and sadness aside. Her mother and sister in no position to help in their grief, her brothers being useless as she realised they were immature manchildren.

But, through it all Lachlan Kane had been her rock. Her husband was the glue that held her fractured psyche together, the man that had reached down to pull her up when she fell or the world held her down.

But now, there was a dark cloud over both of them. Lachlan had changed due to his own professional issues. A woman who had driven him to the point of breaking. And Sierra had no idea how to stop it. So, to deal with it she did the only thing she knew how. She was going to throw herself into work. Not just at PWS but a return to SCW, the blast from the past tournament and her first appearance in the company in a year. It should have been a happy homecoming, a moment she would smile about, a moment to lift her spirits. Instead she felt let down.

Let down by the company’s attitude.

Let down by the random drawing giving her a partner that she new was substandard.

Let down by having to go against the current world champion and a woman who was a legend in the bombshells division.

It was a feeling she had unfortunately become used to. Sierra had left because of that feeling. Constantly being looked over, pushed aside. And now here she sat, deep in thought as she stared at the plane ticket SCW had sent her to fly to Vegas. Her credentials to get into the backstage area of the Cox pavilion and of course, the BFTP contract that she had signed, scanned and Emailed back. She didn’t even hear her sister walk in.

Rosie: Yo are you fuckin nuts?

She was angry, Sierra snapped out of her focused daze looking over at her younger sister. Rosie was the baby of the family, Younger than Rico and Diego, younger than Sierra, she was in her early twenties, long hair dyed pink with tattoos adorning her arms. She had a different attitude than Sierra but was very much like everyone else in the family, working independents as she grew her skill set. Yet she was opinionated and usually angry about something. Sierra raised her eyebrow waiting for the follow up.

Rosie: Goin back there? Why? You have been killin it in PWS Apex but you want to go back to a place that pigeon holed you as a mixed tag team wrestler?...in a mixed tag team tournament?...the fuck Si?

She couldn’t help but laugh, as usual her sister was speaking from a place of love and care, but she had missed the point entirely. The arrogance of youth, the short sighted nature of anger. It all made Sierra feel amused and like she was doing the right thing. Keeping everyone on their toes and doing what they would least expect. And also keeping her mind off her personal issues and what was going on with her husband. Sierra stood up, taking the paperwork and looking at it one last time before tilting her head at her sister.

Sierra: I guess I’m just a glutton for punishment. Besides, a paycheck is a paycheck…

She went to breeze past Rosita. But her sister reached out grabbing her arm. Sierra stopped mid step and shook her head. Rosita however, was always a stubborn bitch, just like her older sister, just like their mother.

Rosie: Burying your head in work isn’t going to make shit easier. Losing dad was hard on all of us, and Lachlan…I know this shit is weird and out there, but you know he loves you…and you love him..everything will be o-

Sierra: I know…

Sierra interrupted, sternly. Her voice full of bass and authority as she turned to look at her baby sister, Rosita let go of her arm and Sierra went to step forward and away before stopping and shaking her head with a groan.

Sierra: I deal with things in my own way. I’m staying positive because someone has to. I did with dad dying, I did with the disappointment in my first SCW run and I have even with Lachlan going dark….you just have to trust me…I know what I’m doing…but, thanks…I know you’re there for me…

Sierra gave her little sister a small smile. Rosita gave a small nod and stepped back, there was nothing more to be said, nothing more to be done. It was go time…

Well, shit

Sierra: Did y’all miss me?

The voice of Sierra Williams breaks through the silence. We come to a live feed as she steps forward. Her long red hair flowing down from under a black bandana. She shakes her head with an arrogant smirk before looking to the side with her eyebrows raised. She reaches down and picks up the PWS Apex world championship, looking at it before throwing it over her shoulder.

Sierra: I missed you. Kind of. See, there was a time when I ate, slept and bled this company. There was a time when success in SCW was the be all and end all for me. I loved this place, I loved the attitude, I loved the people here and the management. I wanted nothing more than to win a title here that wasn’t the mixed tag team championship. I wanted to hold the Internet title, the roulette title or the bombshells title. I wanted the honor of being able to champion this company in the wider community. But, I slowly realised that I was being lost in the shuffle.

I was being pushed aside and looked at as just another name on the list. I wasn’t “special” I wasn’t looked at as someone who could carry the division and the company to the promised land. So, a year ago I made a decision. I decided that I was going to allow my SCW contract to expire. I wasn’t going to resign or allow it to roll over. I was going to focus somewhere else. I was going to prove I was special…

And goddamnit that’s what I did.

And I get it, in this company it’s taboo to talk about your success in other places. Shit, people didn’t even care about the Honor titles or the histories of people from that company despite the merger. They didn’t care if you were a champion in one of the other companies because apparently it “didn’t matter”. Well It matters. I matter. See, this might come as a shock to you, but when I am actually booked regularly and not held down I thrive. And for the last year I have been dominant. I have been rolling over everyone who was put in the ring with me.

She smirks and pauses looking down at the PWS Apex world title, her name on the nameplate at the bottom.

Sierra: For 344 days I have been the PWS Apex world champion and I have shined, So, why am I back here? Why did I agree to come back to SCW and the Blast from the past? Well, truth is I had a point to prove. I wanted to comeback, I wanted to win this and I wanted to see just how good Amber Ryan was. But, apparently fate is a cruel bitch. No sooner had I agreed to come back, no sooner had I signed the contract to compete that I had been promptly forgotten, shoved aside. And then…teamed with someone useless. And yes Joshua Acquin I am talking about you. Instead of being put oin a team with someone outside the company with something to prove or someone in SCW who has a track record of success I have to team with someone who has been nothing but a joke for the last five years…

Are you kidding me right now?

I get it, I do, all this is random.

But, in a tournament where it is supposed to be the best of the best striving to earn a world title opportunity the fact he is even let into it is a joke. The fact that they allow such random pairings  is fucking stupid and now, well not I have to compensate. I have to carry a two hundred point bag of shit on my back to try and earn an opportunity. Way to handicap me and handcuff me SCW. Seriously, Christian, Mark..thanks for nothing I greatly appreciate it…

The fiery latina can’t help but roll her eyes before moving the PWA Apex title from her shoulder.

Sierra: And to kind of twist the knife the first team we have to face is the current world champion and a woman who by all accounts is a legend in SCW and is also a mixed tag team champion. Great. The woman who held the bombshells title the longest out of everyone and the guy who is one title away from holding every single one in this company. Well, shit. I don’t think I have to tell anyone what my strategy is gonna be. See, it’s clear to me that Acquin won’t be able to stand up to Mac Bane. The guy has been a wrecking ball in SCW, destroying everyone week in and week out, so I can’t let those two be in the ring for any length of time.

See, I’m not stupid enough to discount Mac Bane, OI’ve seen him in the ring, I know how good he is and I know what he can do.

So, I have to keep myself in the ring, against Mikah.,

Now, as good as Mikah used to be, the last few years have not been kind to her. From one of the most dominant wrestlers since SCWs inception to being carried by everyone. Carried by Kris Ryans, carried by Coby Quik and now, carried by Mac Bane. I needed to test the water, to prove I could stand on my own, so I left here, I spread my wings and I did it…Mikah on the other hand?...Mikah has been comfortable, complacent…and lazy…

Sierra scoffs and shakes her head.

Sierra: I have been active, facing the best of the best around the world while snow white has been hanging around acting like life is one big vacation. Well, sweetheart, I’m not going to let you tag in your one big dwarf to let him carry your plastic ass. And I refuse to let Joshua Acquin screw me over by being useless. So, I have to beat the blond down, carry him through this tournament all so I can get in the ring with a dominant champ…easy right? Well, for anyone else it might be incredibly daunting. But for me?...I live for this shit…

Scream.

Failure is a bitter pill to swallow. But in this business it’s something that is usually a taste that everyone knows all too well. You put your heart and soul into everything you do. There is no way to do this job half-assed. If you are in, you are in. That is what everyone knows, that’s what everyone feels. And anyone who does this deserves respect. But some people have more pressure than others. If you come from obscurity, listen and learn, Become a name, you have already done something great. Then after you’ve made that name the pressure starts to melt. But, if you come from a family that has been ingrained in this business, then unfortunately you have pressure from day one. The pressure of expectation. The pressure of potential.

This is what people like Sierra have had.

She is hardly the only one. Austin James Mercer comes from a wrestling family, Alicia Lukas too. And members of SCWs roster in the past. The Russow family, even Lachlan and his brother Malachi. But pressure is pressure. Knowing that you have a family honor to live up to every single time you get in a ring. Day in day out it defines you. Sierra knows the pressure. She knows what it’s like to walk down to that ring and have the weight of the world on your shoulders. She has been a champion, but never a singles champion. And as the days and weeks go on it seems almost impossible.

It has led her to this moment. Standing in her backyard, a heavy bag swings back-and-forth as Sierra hits hard right and left hands. The bag swings wider and harder. Sierra is focused, angry, frustrated. Every loss, every single time she gets close to being respected it just slips away. And the angle remains. It affected everything in her life, when she would go out to eat, she would be angry. When she would help her daughter do her homework she would be angry. When Lachlan was being sweet, she was angry. She was tired of being angry.

She stepped back and kicked the heavy bag and made it swing out sideways. She was so focused that she didn’t hear Lachlan come up behind her. ”Hey save some of that for Candy.” he smiled, the boyish grin that used to melt her heart and make her feel butterflies. Something that was never normal for Sierra. But now even that didn’t have the same affect. She felt like a failure, that she was unable to deliver on his promises. But he always tried to calm her down and make her smile. ”You look thirsty love.” he handed her a bottle of water with a smirk, she knew he was trying to make a joke. She shook her head showing a half smile because deep down it did amuse her.

She took a sip of water before putting it down and unwrapping her hands. She let out a deep sigh and rolled her neck trying to unwind. ”Thanks, I needed that.” She put her hands on her hips and looks over at Lachlan who sits down on the bottom step. ”I just can’t get my mind to turn off. I feel like a failure...two matches in a row down…”

There was silence. Sierra had no idea what to say that she could feel that the air became sick and awkward. Lachlan have a small nod putting his hands together while leaning forward. ”Question, do you and I put a roof over the girls head? And food on the table?” Sierra could tell this was a loaded question. And she knew what Lachlan was getting at. She couldn’t help but nod slowly. ”We have contracts, we do what we love and we sell merch. So, we’re successful” she stayed silent. He made good points, it was understandable. It even made her feel a little bit better. But it wasn’t the same. It wasn’t what she actually felt, or what she thought. It was an empty platitude, stating the obvious of what success in normal people‘s lives would be. Professional wrestling isn’t normal life. Professional wrestling is a completely different animal. She knew it, her family knew it, and she knew damn well her husband knew it.

But Sierra didn’t want to cause an issue or an argument. She knew he was trying to help and make her feel better and in that he succeeded. Sierra knew exactly what she wanted and what she needed. She had the support and the love that she needed from her loving husband and wonderful children. But to get her ass kicked back into shape, she needed her brothers, her sister. Her family.

Candy Coated

She tightened the bandana around her head, her hair was flowing down her back and down her shoulders. Newly dyed red, shining in the light above.

”This has been a bad couple of weeks for me. One of those weeks that makes me question why I even want to do this anymore. Professional wrestling is one of those things that you put everything into. In the last few weeks, coming back to sin city wrestling and trying my hardest, getting a world title match in apex wrestling. And losing both of those matches so close together. It’s hard. It’s hard for the soul and anyone who steps foot in a professional wrestling ring knows what I’m talking about. But when life shoves you down, when you lose and you have to look at yourself in the mirror? You have two roads that you can walk down. To converging paths that lead to different outcomes.”

“One road, leads to ruin. It leads to a bit of self loathing that will break you down and destroy you if you stay there for too long.”

“The other road, that leads to rebuilding yourself. You pick yourself up off the floor, you dust yourself off, you admit your faults, and you move forward. It’s what champions do, it’s what the best do. Some people in this company don’t have what is needed to walk down that path. They would rather blame everyone else, they would rather live in a world delusion. All that does is keep you in the same spot, and when something great does happen, it doesn’t last. And the fact that Jesse Salco is now a champion in this company? It breaks me. But it won’t keep me down.”

“Just like the loss to Maki won’t keep me down.”

Sierra slides her hands into the front pockets of her tight black jeans. The type that have the cuts and tears in them. She looks down at her bright red and black converse a small smirk coming across her lips

”Maki is a real competitor. I threw down the gauntlet, I told her that she needs to prove herself in sin city wrestling and that all of her past accomplishments weren’t really going to get her where she needed to be. They were held in high regard, but at the same time she needed to prove that she belong in this company. And win against me, I think that. But it also shows just how good she is. When against me should actually mean something. I’m no pushover, I am not a nobody just because I haven’t been able to get hold of singles gold. I have faced the best of the best in this goddamn company and I have a winning record and have shown that Sierra Williams is no goddamn joke.”

“And now, now I have to get ready for a match against Candy. “

“She’s a strange one. See, so many people look at Candy and don’t take her seriously. She smiles and bounces around. She laughs and doesn’t seem to be able to take anything seriously. But despite all of that she’s actually an amazing professional wrestler. I have grown to respect what she can do in the ring. I have grown to appreciate what she can do in the ring. And I’ve grown to appreciate that, even be a little bit jealous of the fact that she doesn’t feel the same pressure I do week in and week out to succeed. And I’m sorry Candy but you don’t. You have no idea what it’s like to be me do you have the expectation put on you. Expectation not only by your family, and your friends, but the fans. People know how good I am. They know that I can get on the mat and wrestle, that I can go to the air, that I can brawl, they know that Sierra Williams is talented. But you Candy?. People admire you and like you, but they don’t have the same expectation. They don’t think you’re gonna march down to that ring and beat the hell out of whoever is in front of you in some kind of amazing violet display.”

“If you lose, you have a procession of people looking to dust you off and tell you that you did a good job. If you win you have those same people ready to shower you with praise because to them it was unexpected. And the most frustrating part about all this, is that I can’t stand here and say that you are going to lose to me and actually sound convincing. Because you do have it in me to beat me Candy. You really do. But I need to get right back on that horse. I need to take that road that I was talking about earlier and dust myself off. I had my second shot ever in the world championship last week and I blew it, and I also blew my match against someone here in this company who deep down I know I can actually beat….”

“So you and I are gonna get in the ring. We are going to throw down and do as well as we can. And at climax control I can promise you, things will get scary. Because kill Sierra kill takes one and all new meaning around this time of year”

Just one shot.
Detroit, Michigan
5 Years Ago.

Sierra sat backstage on an uncomfortable steel folding chair, her arms folded over her chest with a black Machine Head hoodie over her body and the hood pulled up, a few strands of her hair flowed out from it as she watched. Her brothers were in the ring, she was there to support them, sitting backstage though she had a sick feeling in her stomach. The other performers walking around talking freely, no one came up to her, no one introduced themselves. She sneered and shook her head. She got it, who was she?. She was just the younger sister of two very capable and respected indy stars who had become a very popular tag team in Canada and now North America.

Diego and Rico went about their work and she gave a small smirk, her eyes moving to a group of giggling girls. Tall, blond haired, blue eyed, untrained wannabes who had boob jobs and wanted to use this to get their looks out there. It made her angry, frustrated and her hands clenched together hidden under her arms. She tilted her head as she saw Diego fly over the top rope onto both opponents after an assist by Rico, the crowd popped so loud she could hear the walls rumble. This was just a small promotion, a weekly show that was put up on a streaming service with a handful of other local shows, but it was still out there, in front of over a thousand people. They were the tag team champions and everyone loved them.

She sighed realising she didn’t want to be there, this was night one of a two night extravaganza being promoted as the biggest show of the year coming out of Detroit, and she was nothing but a fucking passenger. Something caught her attention as she looked over at the direction of the noise. Dan Vrolick, the promoter, booker and owner of the company stormed out from the gorilla position looking at his phone. ”Mother fucker!...” He looked over at the gaggle of blonde girls who had gathered looking concerned.”Look Ladies, Cindi  is out of tomorrow nights opener, we might have to scrap the match cause we can’t find a third for team two” There were groans and tuts and whining and crying.

A small smirk came over Sierra lips, fuck em. Then it happened a small lightbulb went off and she looked over with a laugh pushing up off the steel chair to her feet approaching Dan with a little bit of trepidation and a hint of fear.

”Excuse me. Mr. Vrolick?” He turned raising an eyebrow looking her up and down, Sierra reached up, moving a little hair from her face, pulling back the hood, smiling a little before clearing her throat. ”I’m sorry to bother you but I overheard that you need someone for a match and, I think I can help.” She paused for a moment, gauging his reaction, the other girls all turned their noses up and chuckled to themselves.

Dan turned and with a movement of his hand dismissed them. ”What’s your name?”

Sierra swallowed and took a deep breath. ”Sierra, Sierra Lopez… He raised an eyebrow and looked at the monitor, Diego and Rico had just gone into the finish, winning the match and the fans were going insane high fiving each other, he smirked and turned back to her.

”You’re their little sister right?, Oscar’s daughter?” She gave another small nod biting her lip nervously. ”You have your work papers? VISA and license?” She again gave a quick nod, Dan again looked at the monitor and the craziness that her brothers had caused. He laughed to himself and reached out patting her on the shoulder.

”You’re in ...be here at 2 tomorrow to go over a few things,.and Sierra?...this isn’t a promise….it’s an opportunity..…”

Last Week.

”You really goin back Si?”

Selena Raquel Lopez, Sierra’s younger sister and the youngest child of Oscar Lopez slowly folded her arms over her chest. Her long black hair was tied back away from her face as she slowly leaned against the door frame. Sierra smiled and gave her sister a small nod. ”So to Vegas?. Can I come? I mean I could maybe get a tryout?” Sierra laughed and shook her head with a loud sigh.

Selena, like Diego, Rico and Sierra had trained to be a wrestler. She was only 22, she had done a few tours and was picking up steam and a name before Covid hit. ”I’d like to, but I’m barely employed there. Sin City is out. Apex though? Maybe.” She shot her a grin. Selena looked more like their father than their mother. Sierra had the olive skin, but she had her mothers cheekbones. Selena though, she had the dark hair, she had the big round eyes. She was more of a daddy’s girl than Sierra ever was.

But, Sierra loved her baby sister. ”So, why you going back?. I mean...Sin City haven’t used you in what?...five months?”

Sierra growled under her breath and cleared her throat. It stung, not being asked to come back. She wasn’t asking for full time bookings. She wasn’t asking to be handed title shots. But Sin City was her home for over a year. The place that gave her a new start. ”Loyalty…” She answered with force in her voice. Selena shook her head and stepped forward slapping her sister on the shoulder.

”That should go both ways sis…”

Trenton Tigers?. Jersey Pussies.

Her eyes could be seen above the black and red bandana she wore over her face. A black hook flipped up from her sweatshirt covered the rest. Sierra sat forward on the steps at the front of her home, her hands clasped together as she laughed to herself.

”Guess who’s back. After five long months I finally have a match in Sin City Wrestling. And all I had to do was respond to an open challenge basically begging for a match like some kind of desperate ho in need of a fix. But now, since I have the attention of SCW’s roster, fans and management I can say what I want. And if what I say pisses you off and I don’t ever come back then atleast I’ll have left an impression eh?”

“Since I have been gone, the blonde bimbo lost her title, the biggest championship for women in this company got passed and handed around because no one could actually keep it on themselves, Evie Jordan, a woman who has a horrendous win loss record against yours truly is now the champion, another championship has been thrown into the mix. Lachlan has been treated like shit. The wannabe rockstar with hair that seems to be more primped than what I would ever do won the world title and lost it in a week, the weird guy who talks to a cactus has beaten the giant former world champion and taken a second title of his. What the hell is going on in this place?“

“All of this crazy crap is going on and I haven’t got a phone call to get back in the ring? I signed with another company and I never quit Sin city. I never walked away from this place. It walked away from me.“

“I called out the company week after week. Time after time. Then last week they had an open challenge in a battle royal where anyone could throw their name into a hat to get a possible championship match against Jordan. I put my hand up and didn’t get in, so instead the blonde bimbo who gets everything handed to her ended up winning. What a shock. Maybe Mercedes Vargas was right that there is some serious bias around here. And then to top it all off Christian Underwood, tweets me to say that he thought I was gone and that was the only reason why I wasn’t in the battle royal.“

Sierra scoffs and shakes her head pushing up to her feet, she throws her hood back to reveal freshly dyed flame red hair.

” and then as I said, I saw an open challenge and decided to beg to be accepted back. One of the worst tag teams in the history of tag teams has decided that they wanted to come back to Sin city and straight away they get the goddamn spotlight. The Trenton Tigers have the red carpet rolled out and everyone wants to go and face them. Are you kidding me? This bullshit needs to stop”

“There’s all of this competition in the mixed tag team division and to be honest it does make me smile. Because try as people might they still can’t hold the championships for as long as myself and Lach did.”

“But now the match has been booked, my great return to this company. We get to come back as a team in a sin city wrestling ring for the first time in months. Now the real question I have is, do any of you actually believe the Trenton Tigers are going to beat myself and Lachlan?”

“The Tigers, in whatever configurations they wanted to be in tried continuously to get those mixed tag team championships. And each time they failed. And they also decided to sit there and badmouth my brother-in-law and his girlfriend. The current mixed tag team champions. So, you four idiots couldn’t get the job done and you want to talk shit about the people who actually could?“

Sierra size heavily and shakes her head, her hands and up on her waist,she can’t help but laugh under her breath before her eyes seem to flash green and she looks forward.

”You four can all jump in the ring at the same time for all I care. Lachlan will beat the shit out of Brandon or whatever the other guys name is. And I don’t care if it is Char Kwan or Daniela. I will drag both of you untalented loudmouth bitches into the ring and beat your bloody. Because while I’ve been forced to sit at home and not take part in this company you had chance after chance to do what you needed to do and run your goddamn mouth. And you haven’t stopped.“

“Two weeks ago you threw out an open challenge which was a few words of stupidity standing around in a pre taped video. Oh the current champions never beat you, that’s great. But they beat the people who you couldn’t. And you want respect handed to you on a silver platter. Go on about how tigers are the most dangerous big cat in the world… Which are actually lions you idiots that’s why they are called the king of the jungle.“

“And if we’re staying with the big analogies, you are not predators in this jungle. At this time. In this match. You are the prey. You are the clueless dumb gazelle standing out in an open field, and I’m the lioness stalking you from the high grass. And when the bell rings and we are allowed to go out, I'm gonna run headfirst at you, and I am gonna tear you apart and leave your bloody beaten corpse in the center of said ring to prove a goddamn point. And everyone will once again chant…“

“Kill...Sierra...Kill…”