[Time flies when you're having fun. It wasn't so much that “fun” was doing PR for SCW and the like, but Mercedes Vargas knew the lingo by now. Being the consummate professional that she is in the promotion after all the success that came with it came with the territory, and she staked her claim as a bonafied legend in the company. Open to the confines or a radio studion. It's just after 8 AM and the Argentine is wrapping up a Q-and-A in downtown LA. Typical day, blue skies, and not a single cloud in the sky. The kind of weather you'd expect here in early February.
After the interview ended, Mercedes, relieved that her duty was complete, thanks the host before, exits the studio, walks down the orphaned hallways, and steps through the double doors of the building and into the balmy weather. She fishes through her purse and comes up with the car keys. As she is walking, she aims her car remote as two brief flashes from the headlights comes from a white corvette in parallel park.
She opens the door, climbs in and starts the engine. Adjusting her rearview mirror, she backs out of the garage into the street and drives off.
Reaching for the radio to drown out the silence, the dial glows with an eerily orange light. Rap. Classical. Rock. Her hand draws back as she settles on the tail end of a Gloria Estefan number, before a video call comes in.
Split screen. Mercedes is driving while Irma is on the phone from her house. Mercedes watched Irma with the dabs and strokes coming together into a nature scene. Irma continues adding paint on top of still-wet paint.]
Irma: Hey, how did your match go?
Mercedes: I didn't have a match this week.
Irma: No, but you had a match last week.
Mercedes: Wouldn't you like to know?
Irma: Uh, yeah, that's why I asked.
[She knew it may look like she was being a bitch, but that's only because she was acting like a bitch.]
Mercedes: I didn't leave my match like I hoped. No big deal.
Irma: Funny, because you were making a big deal out of it the moment the card was announced.
Mercedes: Even the best loses matches sometimes. Like I said, it's nothing to worry about. I’m sure I’ll be back in a title scene sooner than I think.
[Irma gives a long hard look at Mercedes. She wanted to say something, but decided to hold her tongue. Getting up, she mutes her TV playing The Joy of Painting.]
Mercedes: What are you up to?
Irma: Art exhibition this weekend and I got a few samples I want to show off. I think I’m getting this water color ice cold. How’s the memoir coming?
Mercedes: Slowly, but surely. Like my career.
Irma: I know this book was really hard for you. How are you dealing with everything?
Mercedes: I don’t know. I mean, there’s still so much to tell, so much to do. I’m coming up on my contract year, and, it’s like, I’m nearing the end of my rope. Just have to tie a knot and hang on.
Irma: We just show you how, but you make the decisions. When you have this much power, you make the decisions. There’s beauty in every tree and bush. Just take the time to look at them.
Mercedes: That was deep. I guess I never thought about it that way. Who told you that one?
Irma: The Joy of Painting. Bob Ross should be a philosopher.
~~~
Blog: Almighty Firesemana del 30 de enero al 6 de febrero de 2022They say it’s lonely at the top. There's a reason they say that. It’s lonely at the top because the top is generally success. Other people come to you to get it, not because they like you and care for you, not because they respect you. At the top, there’s no real friends because they envy you, and your friends, who flatter you, are often plotting your downfall to elevate themselves. The top is a place full of fear, hate, insecurity, greed, domination, backstabbing. That’s just par for the course. And there’s no place where this happens more than this industry.
I know what success is like because I am the most decorated woman in Sin City Wrestling and the only one who can be seen working in two brands. At the end of the day, I’m pretty simple, I turn up, do my thing and get paid, sometimes even enjoy what I do but good Lord almighty it’s like being in the Hunger Games sometimes.
So what exactly keeps me getting up every weekend and continuing to perfect my legacy? What could possibly motivate a person to continue to go through that grind after already accomplishing so much and building quite the legacy along the way? I've practically accomplished everything there is to accomplish in Sin City Wrestling. I'm at or near the top of pretty much every statistical category in the women's division if not the company and I've broken numerous records since I joined the roster. Time and again, I've proven that I'm still a threat in the women's division. Before my prime, in my prime, past my prime, it doesn't matter.
Proving myself is justified.
The Wolf on the top of the hill is never as hungry as the wolves still climbing the hill. Imagine you're, say, a superhero. You're the strongest hero to ever exist. Any foe that you have is practically nothing when they fight with you. With one touch you throw them into oblivion.
They say it's lonely at the top, but I feel it's an acceptable burden for Amber Ryan because it is an honour to lead. Amber has never felt she’s too amazing to treat others like they don’t pose a threat, or those who put her on a pedestal. I’m not going to do that, wouldn’t be me if I did that. See, because unlike most of the Bombshells , I have zero fear of Amber Ryan. No, I’m not trying to psyche myself out for my match, I just never feared Amber when the ink dried on her contract, I never feared her when she was announced as the newest Bombshell to the roster on Twitter. Certainly didn’t fear her in our first go round. And that won’t change this weekend.
I put my ear to the ground and I hear the doubters and the critics and the naysayers. They don't think I can do it. And to the surprise of no one, there’s a lot of opinions on how Sunday’s main event is going to go. “Mercedes doesn’t stand a chance, Amber’s gonna kill you!” and so on and so forth. People seem to forget that I'm one of the few people who has never lost to Amber.
In less than forty-eight hours, the first round of the Blast From the Past Tournament begins in what will be a very tough field, it always is every year. The teams were chosen, the matches were made. Now it's time to get this show on the road. And I’m going to hit the ground running with a match I didn’t expect to be in.
The lethal lottery can be a cruel mistress sometimes. Some may hide their dismay for a partner they didn't want or a matchup against a team that is favored to win the tournament by outright. History hasn’t been kind to me with partners in the tournaments the last few go rounds. Now, granted, I can get along with just about anybody., and personally any of the Superstars would want someone as accomplished as I am as their partner, but I can only do so much. You can only do so much when you’re partner isn’t just a newcomer but also a rookie into the wrestling business. Did I mention he’s a YouTube star? I didn’t? Well, it bears repeating: he’s a YouTube star.
Great.
Conventional wisdom says that Shane Hawthorne and I are facing an uphill battle. Conventional wisdom says that
my last few appearances in the Blast From the Tournament haven’t been anything to write home about. Conventional wisdom says that my team could be one of the first to be eliminated early. Conventional wisdom says that Amber and Hitamashii are a shoo-in to at least get far in the tournament than any team.
Win or lose this week, I have a chance to make a statement by proving that I’m able to stand toe to toe with Amber, something that not many have accomplished. Amber is known by a lot of names. The Painted Hurricane. Then again, that bitch has piled up a lot of bodies in SCW. She’s defeated practically every woman in the company. She’s beaten Roxi, Crystal, Myra, and Jessie multiple times during her title reign. They might not like to hear it, but facts are facts. No wonder why Amber is bored. The only name NOT on that list is mine. You know your women's division is the best in the world when it takes two years to find somebody to finally shut her up. I’m very self-aware of her superior talent, and if it wasn't for her arrogance and tendency for showing off, she'd be unbeatable (instead of just mostly so).
As we all learned from The Matrix Reloaded, you never truly know someone until you fight them. There’s a reason Amber and I are fighting this weekend, it’s up to me to embrace it. It’s up to me to show everybody what Mercedes Vargas is truly capable of. I have an unquenchable fire. More specifically a fire inside of me that just wants to see me standing over someone and my hand raised in victory.
I'm not willing to bend or break for anybody. I sure as hell don't need to validate myself to the fans, this company, or the lockerroom, because theirs or anybody's expectations will never exceed mine. I mean that with so much emphasis.
If I had a middle name, history would be it. Last name Vargas, first name Mercedes. Prefaced by the most important thing.
New. Bombshell. Champion.~~~
B E V E R L Y H I L L S • C A L I F O R N I A[The stakes couldn't be any higher. This weekend's tag match was just the appetizer. Las Vegas were lucky to get to host the most important tournament at this point. Mercedes Vargas will have to be at her level best to win, especially this weekend.]
MERCEDES: What else you got?
RICARDO: Nothing as good as Statue Of Eternity. It’s brilliant.
MERCEDES: I’ve heard better. Change the title and send it back out.
RICARDO: That’s like me asking you to change your face Mercy. The title is everything.
[Ricardo is having a creative dry spell and meets Mercedes at the local restaurant.]
MERCEDES: What does Statue of Eternity even mean?
RICARDO: I’m just spitballing here, but it’s the next superhero movie. Think Wonder Woman meet Lady Liberty.
MERCEDES: So, an action movie, right?
RICARDO: Could be. A dark crime thriller works too.
MERCEDES: Richie, if anything this should be a comedy. The title and script is so bad.
RICARDO: Well, excuse me, princess. I’m trying to be original here, do something different, alright? That’s my problem, no one ever understands me. If they took the time to read my stuff, this would be box office gold.
MERCEDES: You’re not an artist. Let’s finish our drinks and get to the airport.
[Richie downs his beer.]
MERCEDES : Let’s go.
RICARDO: I still don’t see anything wrong with it? Come on,, it’s just a title!
MERCEDES: If someone sent me a script with a name like that, I wouldn’t read it.
RICARDO: Alright…let’s get out of here. Maybe you’re right.
MERCEDES: I like to think I always am, but thank you.
[Mercedes downs her pina colada. Ricardo puts money on counter, waves to the local bartender who waves back.]
~~~
Present Day ♦ S A N T A M O N I C A, C A L I F O R N I A[REC•]“¡Imbécil, enciende la maldita cámara!”
“Moron, turn the damn camera on!”
[Open up on an breezy late evening where we find Mercedes Vargas sitting outside the patio, a block from the Santa Monica Pier and 3rd Street Promenade, with fountains and metal sculptures overlooking the scenic views of the Pacific Ocean and of the Santa Monica Pier. The sun has sunken below the horizon and the low tide glittered invitingly. The usual crowd was here. The residents, the surfers, and the accidental tourist. All were welcome.
For someone who just suffered a tough loss recently, Mercedes is visibly upset. The Argentine stares back at us through the camera dressed in bootcut jeans and representing her Mean Girls pride, sporting a black t-shirt with the iconic Mean Girls logo, and the occasional baseball cap. She looks down a bit, waiting for the words to come to her. When she has the words at the tip of her tongue, she lets out a breath, then begins. Obviously, her upcoming match and the events of the past few weeks has really got her fired up.]
“The World Mixed Tag Team Championship are no longer with Goth and I after Inception, and I’ll take that. It’s my fault why we’re no longer champions. And I bet a lot of you out there are thinking now that Reckless Elite have the titles that Goth and I have largely fallen by the wayside. And you would be dead wrong. Because we have a rematch in our back pocket, and this damn sure isn’t over. Not by a long shot. So Kris and Mikah, if I were you, I wouldn’t plan on keeping those titles very long.”
[Though Mercedes and Goth gave Reckless Elite a respectable match at Inception, the result was no different than her previous matches or against Mikah for that matter. Mercedes pauses for a long moment, her eyes closed, clenching her fist, emotions having caught up with her state of mind. Only when she opened her eyes again and looked up at the camera did the next words were spoken with conviction.]
“No matter how good you are, no one is invincible. Whether you're the most decorated wrestler in the entire company, or one of the popular tandems in SCW. And even me being the most decorated talent by far here in Sin City Wrestling, I still don’t get the respect that I deserve. Regardless of what the other Bombshells say about me, I’ve worked for it. I’ve earned it. I damn well deserve it. Apparently, now you have people going on
media sociale trying to become aspiring comedians subjected to making jokes at my expense, intended to amuse their little peanut gallery. Little do they know, the joke is on them. So who is headlining the first Climax Control after Inception? Who’s headlining the first Climax Control of 2022? Where’s the roastmaster? Didn’t even get a mention.”
[Mercedes raises her index finger in a wait-a-minute gesture.]
“You know who IS headlining the first Climax Control after Inception? Who’s headlining the first Climax Control of 2022?”
[Mercedes points at herself.]
“This girl right here! Even better? It’s the 10th annual Blast From the Past Tournament, which I just found my match also doubles as a World Bombshell Championship match against none other than Amber Ryan in the opening round.
“Sabes, la familiaridad genera menosprecio. Así como la familiaridad engendra desprecio, así también el éxito engendra autocomplacencia.”
You know, familiarity breeds contempt. And just as familiarity breeds contempt, success often spawns complacency.“They say familiarity breeds contempt. I don’t know about that. I better get used to the fact that I'm not going to get any sleep this weekend, because apparently, familiarity is the least emotion I’m feeling right now. More like excited. I'm very excited to return to UNLV and the Cox Pavilion, I'm very excited to come down to Las Vegas , I'm very excited to see my fans. And I’m just as excited facing Amber again.Sometimes I have to pinch myself to make sure it's all real.”
[Mercedes waves her hand in a dismissive gesture toward the camera. Fortune may favor the bold, but against Amber Ryan, it's going to take more than that to unseat her from her place on top of the division.]
“Inception V may not have gone the way that I wanted. A pair of losses may not have gone the way I wanted, but excuses aren’t going to cut it. I failed, that's just the way it is. But failure isn’t fatal. Sunday is about making a statement. It’s about sending a message that I take a backseat to no one, and Amber is going to learn that lesson the hard way.”
[Nodding her head, Mercedes allows her words to settle in and find their place in the hearts and minds of those watching. The indignant expression remains on her face as Mercedes crosses her arms.]
“Anyways, it’s been awhile since I crossed paths with Amber and I won’t be taking it lightly. I didn’t die last time we fought but I didn’t win or lose either. I almost wish we met in different circumstances with the title on the line. Amber don’t deserve to defend her title in a mixed tag match, especially in the Blast From the Past. But then again, I don’t book the matches. She’s actually have to kill me this time to keep that title.
“You woke up and chose violence today, didn’t you, Amber? I may have lost the last few times, but there's still a twinkle in my eye, a smile on my face, and a pep in my step. This is what confidence looks like. Because even in defeat, I cannot be dismissed. Let’s face it, Amber, Christian Underwood didn’t set this matchup this weekend as a another easy defense, he set it up to really push you.
“That being said, Amber, here’s your chance to accomplish that goal, to make your dream become a reality. But let’s get one thing perfectly clear: if there is anyone under pressure leading into this match, it's you. I’ve got nothing to lose, and everything to gain. You have everything to lose, and nothing to gain. And that's a scary thought. What’s scarier? You're gonna need to lose that title to understand what winning it and keeping it means. I don’t win by outlifting people or outrunning people…I win by outsmarting them.
That is what being a champion is all about. Whether I was a tag team champion, Bombshell Roulette champion, world champion...it didn't matter. When my feet was put to the fire, I walked on hot coals and survived. When I was put to the test, I passed with flying colors, and when there's an obstacle in my way, I remove it from my way. I'm not counting the days, Amber. Instead I'm going to make them count. I've done that for nine years now..
"You know, Amber, just between us, I just have to ask you: are you enjoying your title reign? See because over the last few title reigns, a lot of people were talking. When Alicia had her 2019 title run, people like Roxi Johnson said the title was in purgatory. I wonder if she’s saying that about you now? So, I'm not surprised that there's a target on your back and everyone wants at you for your title. You’re not getting those eight hours of sleep a night. Constantly wondering and worrying what new challenge awaits, who will be coming next to end your title reign, what Bombshell will be gunning for you. The expectations..."
[Mercedes raises a hand above her head.]
“...are that much higher."
[Her voice was scarcely more than a whisper, but just enough to still be heard.]
“So are the stakes."
[Mercedes makes her hands go limp as she crosses her arms in front of her.]
“See, I live for matches like these, Amber. Because no matter how high the stakes are, no matter what the odds are, no matter how intense the pressure, I always answer the bell. The question is, will you? Will you meet those expectations one more time? Because if you think that you will meet them at my expense, then you couldn't BE more wrong. Come Sunday, the world will be watching and waiting and wondering if you can pull off an encore performance. And at the end of the night, they will have their answer. You're going to let a lot of people down that night: your fans, your fellow Bombshells, your husband, but, more importantly, yourself.
“You're going to disappoint once again. Because when you and I meet in that ring, yeah, it will be very different than our last match two years ago, mamita. I also want you to think that this match is in your favor. Train to your little heart's content. I want you to look past me. Go ahead, do it. Kick back and relax a little. I dare you. I want you to be consumed with the notion that you will beat me, and then realize that while the crowd expects it, the outcome won’t be.
“As for you? All you'll be leaving with are bumps and bruises, stitches, your wounded pride, and a paycheck. Oh, and a lonely flight back to that third-rate shitty state you call
New Jersey.”
[She smirks. and holds out her hands in a defiant manner.]
“The only caveat saving your title reign is me beating your ass in the middle of the ring. You better hope Hitamashii saves your title reign, or Shane Hawthorne defeats Hitamashii.”
[Mercedes swipes a hand over face. The once proud smile she had has transformed into a serious expression.]
“I guess what I'm really trying to say Amber, is while you seem to always have a chip on your shoulder, I’ll be more than welcome to take that chip off your shoulder, and that title off your waist. I'm going to make or break you at this Sunday.”
[In the end, there was only one person that was going to walk in and walk out of Climax Control with the win. In her own mind, she was the one. In her mind, she was the only one, and she knew it. In less than three days, her opponent would find out why. The thing is, she was going to find a way, not a way out.]
“Whether you love me, hate me or feel completely indifferent about me, there’s no denying one thing: when it comes to the all-time greats, when there’s a historic moment about to be made, when you talk about champion of champions? Nobody does it better.
“The crazy part is, I got my start in this company at 32. I’m still winning championships nine years later. And like fine wine, the older I get, the better I get. There’s not a damn woman on this roster who compares to me.”
[Mercedes fluffs and straightens out her hair and then slowly cross her arms.]
“There’s more to Mercedes Vargas than irrelevant facts and snippets of random trivia. Just so happens that I’m the only 14-time champion in history. But you know what’s better than being a 14-time champion?
“Being a 15-time champion.”
[Looking deadset into the camera lens, her voice drops to a whisper though her words hold conviction behind them.]
"Estar preparado para lo peor, esperar lo mejor."
"Prepare for the worst, hope for the best."[She pauses for effect, lowering her voice just above a whisper.]
"Y que la suerte está siempre en su favor.”
“And may the odds be ever in your favor."***Fade***
