"There is a time for work and a time for play. I have been accused of being single-minded in my pursuits, even before my time in wrestling when my world revolved around Mixed Martial Arts. I trained, and when I wasn't training, I was training some more. Or at least that is how my personal trainer in MMA, Maksym Petrov, would phrase it. He believed, as did my brother, that there was such a thing as too much where training was concerned."
"I disagreed. I believe in commitment to what you have laying on the road ahead. When I am not competing, I keep to my schedule. But when I had a fight scheduled in MMA, or a match here in SCW, all thoughts of recreation were pushed to the back of my mind and I had but one goal; to win. But it was the whisperings from Gabriel Stevens that made me realize the threat of burnout. It hadn't happened yet in either career but given how mentally stressful and physically hazardous both professional wrestling or MMA could be, I came to understand the value of when and where to take it easy."
Las Vegas
The gym that served as a training facility for the future stars of the world of professional wrestling has become quite the familiar site for Fenris, especially over the past two weeks. With the exception of his venture to New York City last week alongside his man, Ty West, Fenris had surprised even those closest to him with the intense dedication that he was showing. Every morning after his usual jog, he would arrive for a workout with the state of the art equipment housed within this facility. He would then return after lunch for a sparring match, but Gabriel and Odette both insisted it be against either a graduate of their gym or someone else who made their respective sport their calling card; Despayre, Synn, even Gabriel himself.
Simply put, he was too intense to put in the ring for a sparring match against their students and thus risk injury.
And in the evening, before dinner, Fenris would engage in another training session, but this time with Maksym Petrov at the helm so as to keep his skills in the world of MMA sharp and focused. It was a small wonder why at the end of the day, Fenris always crashed heavily into bed, sleeping soundly until it was time to rise once again the next day to begin it all over again.
Now, it was morning, still early with the sun still freshly risen over the Vegas skyline. Soon the colorful array of pinks, yellows and oranges would fade to the clear blue sky expected. Gabriel was already present, up and wide awake, coffee in hand as he went about his usually opening rituals, getting the facility ready for the students who would be showing up within the hour. He himself had asked Fenris to meet up with him beforehand, earlier than their usual training time, so that they could have an important talk about his upcoming match. Since there was no Despayre or Angel yet at the reception desk this morning to buzz any visitors in, Gabriel sat there himself, reviewing a previous day's training session on his laptop when the front door opened, drawing his attention up.
In walked Fenris, who appeared tired and even crankier than he might usually be accused of. He too possessed a large cup of coffee in one hand, and in the other hand was a leash with his beloved Kyssa trotting in alongside her master, tongue hanging out and tail wagging a mile a minute. Bringing up the rear, and carrying his brother's gym bag, was of course Aron, who seemed unusually disgruntled. The two brothers were engaged in a heated exchange in their native tongue, and Gabriel smiled, privately thankful that he had taken the time to learn the basics of the Icelandic language.
"I don't see why you had to wake me up to come along." Aron argued. "Gabriel asked for you to be here early, not me."
"Tough. Shit." The hot headed Fenris replied through gritted teeth before he took a draft of the life giving java. "You're my manager. If I have to be up early then so do you!"
"Jesus you two look like shit." Gabriel joked, observing them both, and judging by their surprised facial responses, Gabriel hazarded a guess this early hour caused them to almost forget that he could understand every word.
Fenris, however, was ready with a reply as he said, "Well it is your fault, making us get up this damn early just to talk."
"Correction," Aron spoke up. "But it was your idea to get up even earlier so that you could go on your usual morning run."
Gabriel added, "And I only said I needed to talk to you. You didn't have to drag Aron out of bed." To which Aron gestured toward Gabriel with a silent 'See?' that Fenris ignored. Gabriel had gotten to his feet and walked around the desk and lowered himself to one knee so he could ruffle the snow white fur of the husky. He couldn't help it, being such an animal lover.
"Did mean ol' Kristjan make you get up early too?" Gabriel gushed at the canine and she answered with a loud bark that reverberated off the hallway walls, prompting a laugh from the Hall of Famer. He stood up and asked, "Why'd you bring her, anyway?"
"We just came from our run, straight here." Fenris answered. "I take her with me every morning."
Gabriel nodded, saying, "Well that explains that..." He then wrinkled his nose. "And the smell."
Fenris and Aron frowned, then turned their noses to their clothes and bodies but Gabriel grabbed both men by their shoulders and steered them toward the open door that led inside to the gym itself, saying, "I think you both need to hit the showers before we have that talk."
"It's not like we're not going to work out anyway and get sweaty all over again..." Fenris protested but Gabriel would not hear it.
"Think of my nose, man!" He said with a grin on his face, to this day enjoying busting the chops of one of his top students.
With mumbled protests, the two brothers were herded into the gym and toward the offered men's showers, when Gabriel reached down and grasped the leash from out of Fenris's hand. "Not you!" Gabriel mused as the dog looked up at him with her pale, blue eyes. "I'd rather the gym not smell of wet dog."
Kyssa huffed and Gabriel shot back, "Yeah, same to you too, sister!"
Later...
After the morning workout, Fenris and Aron sat on the ring apron of the six-sided ring, the one of two wrestling rings inside of the gym, while Gabriel stood in front of the pair with his arm folded.
Gabriel said, "Okay, before the new kids on the block show up, I just needed to talk to you, Kristjan, before we call it a day."
"Call it a day?" Fenris frowned. "I'll be back later..."
But Gabriel interrupted, shaking his head, "No. You're not going to have time. You have that interview scheduled later and after we have this chat, you're going to have enough on your mind to keep yourself occupied. I know you always work out right up until Friday evening, but you'll be fine."
Fenris looked like he was about to say something, possibly in protest, but Gabriel stalled him with a hand held up and he said, "Kristjan, you've been a goddamn machine about this match. More than usual. With the exception of your little jaunt to New York last week, you've been going at it, non-stop. After everything that Maksym and I've put you through the past two weeks, if you're not ready by now..." He shook his head seriously. "Then you won't be."
Fenris paused in thought, and finally yielded, shrugging his shoulders. It was the most Gabriel could want or expect given his student's stubborn nature. Fenris then asked, "So what is this talk about that will have me thinking?"
"Just the actual workings of this match against Alex, Jake and Travis." Gabriel answered. "We haven't had time to discuss how this is actually going to go, so that's why I wanted to do this early. Give you time to rest and recuperate from your physical workout while you let your mind do the rest."
Aron snorted back a laugh at that, to which Fenris delivered a sharp elbow to his brother's arm.
Gabriel continued, "Now, outside of tag team matches, you haven't been in anything like this before. Triple Threat or Fatal Fourway. Nothing outside of an individual opponent."
"Yeah, so?" Fenris replied. "End goal is still the same."
Gabriel shook his head, "But not as easy to achieve. You do know that pretty much anything goes in these matches, correct? I mean, you have to win by pinning or submitting an opponent, so it's almost impossible for a match like this to end in a disqualification or count out."
Gabriel's words were starting to sink into the stubborn mindset of Fenris and the teacher saw the moment the student started to understand the implication of what he was saying. Gabriel went on to say, "You've always competed in a structured environment. Rules and regulations. In a match like this, you have to throw that out the door and be prepared to improvise in case one of your opponents decides to fight dirty. Use a weapon or have someone on the outside lend a helping hand."
Aron observed, "I don't think any of them would go that route. Jake and Travis seem legit. I mean, maybe Alex would but he seems to want to win this legit too."
"That's all we can hope." Gabriel acknowledged. "But your brother needs to be ready, just in case." he then turned his undivided attention to Fenris and went on, "Not to mention, like I said to you as soon as this match was announced, almost half of your arsenal won't be as effective. The vast majority of your skill set is submission based. Given the stakes and the numbers game, none of those three men are going to sit back and watch while you slap on a submission hold. The moment you do, one or the other will be there to break it up. I told you then to come up with a solution. Have you thought about what you'll do then?"
Fenris answered, "I guess I'm just going to have to knock their asses out so they won't have the chance."
Gabriel smiled, for the first time since this talk started. Fenris understood, and the answer itself was simple, even if the match itself would not be. That was when they heard the tell-tale sound of the buzzer go off, and the door leading from the hall opened and a small group of young men and women walked in, carrying gym bags. Behind them was Gabriel's wife Odette, carrying their daughter while Lucas ran in after. The child's bright eyes lit up when he saw his dad and the two Baltasarsson brothers.
"Okay, go on." Gabriel said. "Take the rest of the day for yourselves so you can be ready for your interview. Preferably before Lucas asks for a rematch!" Referring to the "title defense" from earlier this week in Charlotte Elliot's promo. (And if you haven't read it yet, then shame on you! )
Fenris stood up from the ring apron and smirked, "I won, didn't I?"
"Only because you held the lad down and tickled him until he cried uncle." Gabriel laughed.
"Hey," Fenris shrugged. "Whatever it takes to win!"
Later that evening -
World Web Wrestling
Several small scenes cut across the computer screen, vertically and horizontally in film format, of the host, Dwayne Carter, interacting with professional wrestlers at sporadic events and on stage in his interview setting. As the music played slowly subsides in beat and tempo, finally fading away completely into the background, the screen shifts to the WWW Studio stage where two chairs are the main prominent feature.
In the first chair on the left of the screen, was Dwayne Carter, host of the program. In the remaining chair to his right was the reigning SCW World Heavyweight Champion, Fenris.
The final notes of the music vanish and Dwayne leans forward in his chair and speaks into the camera;
Dwayne says, "Hello everyone, and I want to welcome you to another edition of 'World Web Wrestling' the premiere online source of entertainment for your professional wrestling needs! My special guest this week will be defending the SCW World title against three men in a Fatal Fourway at this weekend's Blaze of Glory VII, the 'White Wolf' Fenris! Fenris, welcome to the show."
Fenris stared at the man beside him as if he were in pain, but he finally found his voice and answered, "I'd say it was a pleasure, but I really don't want to be a liar." He shook his head. "I never was one for interviews. Meeting fans can be fun though."
Dwayne says, "But as the World Champion, a title that you've now held for over seven months, public appearances, meet and greets, and interviews are all necessary evils."
"It's hell being the best." Fenris smiled, and Dwayne chuckled. "I can only imagine." He said. "But I was warned how you felt so I promise to make this as painless as possible. In fact, I thought it might be fun if this time around, the fans were to interview you for a change. We've opened the phone lines early, and we've already got the lines tied up with fans of yours who would like to ask you a question."
Fenris thought about this for a moment, then nodded. There was even the faint wisp of a smile on his face as if he believed this experience would be more comfortable than your average interview.
Dwayne then said, "Now before we take our first caller, this weekend you are scheduled to defend your title for the eighth time in Anaheim, California, at the ACC Arena against three other men. Jake Raab. Travis Levitt. And Alex Jones. How are you feeling going into this match?"
"Ready." Fenris answered straight away. "Gabriel and Odette Stevens, both who trained me for this sport. My MMA coach Maksym Petrov. They've been running my ass ragged to make sure I'm ready. Hell! I've been running my own ass ragged! This is first time I defended against more than one man at a time so I can not afford to not be ready."
Dwayne asked, "Now you debuted on April 15th of last year, and have yet to suffer a loss. What would you say is the secret to your success?"
"Simple." Fenris smiled. "I'm better than everyone they put me against."
Dwayne chuckled, "Well it's hard to dispute that. Now, let's get to our first caller, shall we? This is Aidan from Chicago. Aidan? You're on the air."
Aidan asked, "Hey Fenris! I was just wondering who has the worst music tastes at Gabriel and Odette's gym?"
"Lucas." Fenris answered with a smile. "Kid switched the usual music with the soundtrack from Spongebob Squarepants once and I was ready to tear my hair out by the end of the day!"
Dwayne said, "Alright, next we have Noah from Winnipeg, Manitoba!"
Noah said, "Fenris! Who's the hardest worker out of Gabriel's students?"
Fenris just gave the camera that cocky smirk and held his arms out as if to silently say, 'Duh!'
Dwayne said, "This is Riley from Fort Wayne, Indiana."
Riley said, "Hey champ! What is your routine before a big match?"
Dwayne observed, "That's a good question."
"My routine?" Fenris repeated with a light hearted shrug. "Once a match is announced, starting Monday I do my usual routine, working out wrestling in morning and MMA in evening. In between, usual weight training and cardio. Until Friday night, as I usually take Saturday off from training."
Dwayne asked, "And is there a reason for that?"
Fenris shrugged, "If I'm not ready after all that, I might as well not be. So I take the day before the big match off to rest and prepare mentally."
Dwayne said, "Thank you for that. Now we have Mark from London, England! Wow! That's a loyal fan."
Mark asked, "Not really. Pub call. Anyway, do you have any superstitions or pre match rituals?"
Fenris shook his head, "Not really the superstitious sort. But pre match rituals? Well, you see me kneel and cross my heart on the stage. That is my prayer to Balder, the fallen god."
Dwayne asked, "Do you still practice the Norse religion?"
Fenris said, "I do. Too many people believe the Norse religions went out with Christianity. Not true. It is still going strong, even a thousand years after the Vikings."
Dwayne said, "Interesting. Okay, now we have Quinn from Columbus, Ohio."
Quinn asked, "Fenris, if you had to pick a tag team partner, who would it be?"
Fenris answered, "Ty West. But if I have choice, I'd prefer not to choose at all. I do not like tag team matches. Never have."
Dwayne said, "Fair enough. This is Elliot from Patna, India."
Elliot asked, "Do you have any Blaze of Glory VII Predictions?"
Fenris took a moment to think about this one before he answered, "Dani will win the Bombshell title a second time. Ty will win the Roulette title. And of course, I will retain. Obviously."
Dwayne, "Next up we have Grayson from... wow! Buchares, Romania!"
Grayson asked, "Do you have any hobbies?"
Fenris answered, "Besides training? I do not have much time for hobbies. I have my dog, Kyssa, I care for. Watch the occasional movie, or British sitcoms Gabriel got me into or some anime. Drinking?" He smiled and Dwayne laughed.
Dwayne said, "I suppose drinking could be considered a hobby. Now we have two more callers. First, it's Gene from North Las Vegas."
Gene asked, "Fenris, who would you say is your hardest opponent?"
Fenris frowned and looked to Dwayne and said, "That is rather personal question."
Dwayne said, "I think he means who was your toughest opponent to date."
Fenris nodded with a silent, 'Oh!' before he answered, "In that case, is toss up between Jake Raab and Senor Vinnie. Vinne took me to the brink of my first loss, but Jake busted me up like nobody had done before."
"Hi! This is...er, Ted ... E.! Yeah, Ted E.... Bear! Yeah that'll do... Anyhoo, First time caller, long time... well I can't say long time fan because that would be a fib and Santa is watching." This caller has Fenris and Dwayne exchanging confused glances when the caller asked, "Hey Fenris! Do you know where Angel put his Universal remote for my TV? I can't find it and we wanna watch TV before bed."
Fenris frowned and then finally said, "Despayre? ... How would I know where your TV remote is!?"
The caller said hotly, "First of all, it's Ted E. Bear! And second of all, Dwayne said we could call in and ask any question! **huffs** Never mind!" There was a brief shuffling sound and a click, when the caller then said, "Boy it's no wonder nobody likes him! So. Rude!"
Fenris's eyes narrowed when the caller said indignantly, "No, Angel! I did so hang up! .... I think I know the difference between hanging up and putting myself on speaker pho-oh! Oops!" And with a nervous giggle, the call was promptly ended.
Dwayne said, "Well that was certainly interesting... and informative. Now before we bring this evening to a close, I wanted to ask the hard question. Fenris, after what happened several months ago with Kris Ryans..." Dwayne ignores the sudden frown on Fenris's face. "... have you noticed any difficulties in your career?"
"Difficulties?" Fenris frowned. "Like what?"
Dwayne said, "Such as, has any of your fans or colleagues treated you any different when it was revealed to the world that you preferred men?"
"What? No!" Fenris growled. "It was as Gabriel told me, nobody cares! And if any fans who liked me before, decided they do not like me now?" He shrugged. "Fuck them!"
Dwayne asked, "And you don't feel like you did the gay community who supports MMA or wrestling a disservice by not coming out sooner?"
"Excuse me!?" Fenris turned in his chair to face Dwayne directly. "What the fuck is that supposed to mean!? How is what happened to me in my personal life doing anyone any kind of disservice!?"
Dwayne blanched momentarily before he answered, "Well it's just that as a gay role model, many believe that you should have come out sooner."
"Says who?" Fenris asked hotly. "Hm? Who says I should have? And who the fuck business is it of anyone when or how I came out in the first place!?"
"Well as a gay role model..."
Fenris interrupted, "Back up! That is second time you call me a gay role model! Why the hell are you labeling me!? Why can't you just call me role model who just so happens to be gay!?" His stare has Dwayne frozen and speechless, but Fenris does not ease up.
"First of all," Fenris said. "I am only 'out' because of that fuck up I pulled with Kris! Would I be out now if that had not happened?" He shrugged. "Who knows? Maybe. maybe not, but it sure as shit isn't 'owed' to anyone! What? Now me putting my body on the line every god damn week isn't enough!? Bleeding like a fucking stuck pig isn't enough for them, they have to know what I do in the bedroom too!? Well shit! If I had known that then maybe that sex tape should have been made public! Because apparently now I 'owe' it to everyone to let them know who the hell I fuck!?"
Dwayne started to say, "Well..."
"BULLSHIT!!!" Fenris bellowed, startling Dwayne and causing the host to push back into his own seat in a subconscious effort to get away from the hostile guest. Fenris continued on with his rant, "My personal life isn't anyone's fucking business! It was not before I was out, and it sure as shit isn't now! If a gay fan looks at me and says if Fenris can do this, then I can to -- then great! Fucking A! But they should have that confidence in themselves not because I say so, but because it is so!"
Fenris then stood up and pointed at Dwayne who flinched openly, "If they think they don't have a place in any sport just because of who they go to bed with, that's their fault! Not mine and fuck anyone who tries to say different!"
Fenris then stormed off the stage set, knocking his chair over and leaving the host very discomforted in his wake.
Across the city of Las Vegas, in the SCW offices... Co-Owner "Hot Stuff" Mark ward is staring at the laptop screen on his desk, having watched the broadcast with a noticeable smile on his face as he said aloud to no one in particular, "Well hello there Fenris! Where the bloody hell have you been?"
"You have questions, I have the answers."
The darkness was suddenly illuminated by a single spotlight over the ring where Fenris say on the canvas, cross-legged with the SCW World Heavyweight Championship strewn out across his lap.
"Have I ever been in a match like this, where I could lose my championship without actually losing the match? Been asked that question ever since this got booked and the answer is ... no. I have not, and I do not like it. I get why it was booked. SCW is all about equal chances. If the women are in this spot, then only fair the men are too. Does not mean I have to like it though. I prefer straight up fights, one on one. Man to man. Jut like when I won title by beating someone who wasn't the actual champion, I was not satisfied until I faced and defeated Kris Ryans. Now is no different. I'm pretty god damned sure that all three of these guys will be beating the hell out of me, or trying to at least, because they want to leave no doubts. They want to be the man who ends my streak. They want no fan or so-called experts saying they are not the true champion because they did not beat the champion."
Fenris chuckled.
"That strategy might work at first, but it won't last for long. Each man in this match, including me -- especially me, has an ego the size of Iceland! One will not stand aside and allow the other to get the win and the championship! Tempers will flare. Fights will break out! And then, that will be all the opening I need to lay one of their asses put and walk away with the world title still around my waist!"
"I'm no fool. I know that eventually their mindset will break down and soon they will not care who they beat, just so long as one gets the win and the title."
He shook his head.
"I even understand now that in match like this, no real rules to enforce since it can not end on a disqualification. That's fine. Even better! Does anyone out there actually think I can not handle myself in a brawl? If one brings friend to interfere and help him win, do you not think I can't do the same? I can, I would just prefer not to because unlike some wrestlers I have seen, I don't fucking need help in order to win a match! And I would like to think these three men I am against have the same moral code to want to win this on their own!"
Slowly Fenris uncrossed his legs and stood up, bringing the world title belt up along with him.
Fenris nodded as he said, "I know Jake Raab does. There has been talk, crude remarks about whether or not he should be in this match. Jake, if anyone says you do not, tell them to watch that fucking match that you and I had and what we did to each other! Tell them to watch what you did to me! You may not have won the match but you sure as shit won my respect! I will respect any man who can do to me what you did, and I will defend your right to be in that ring against me again! And what's more, I respect what the hell you came back from!"
"I know I went to all lengths to walk away the winner of our match because I knew damn well that you would do the same! Your hand, your shoulder? Both hurt. Both requiring surgery. And despite the fact, you just kept fighting, even if it meant risking further harm. You still fought Vinnie. You may not have won, but you had the heart to fucking show why you're going places! And hurt or not, here you are again. Against myself and two other men. And believe me, I have no doubt you'll want to answer back for what hell I put you through. Well, Jake?"
He leaned against the ropes.
"I wouldn't have it any other way!"
Fenris then stood upright, his blue eyes glaring straight into the camera/
"Have not heard much of anything from Travis, but that is alright. Even with no words can be enough of a warning of what type of man he is inside of the ring. They always say to watch out for the quiet ones. Well, Travis has been quiet, but his actions are loud enough. I mean, who out there thought it would be Austin James Mercer who was going to win the triple threat against Travis and Caleb? Hm?"
Fenris briefly raised his own hand in acknowledgment.
"I know I did, and Travis proved me wrong. He proved a lot of people wrong when he won and advanced to this title match. Here's a little fact for you, Travis."
Fenris beckoned the camera closer with a motion of his forefinger.
"I don't like being proven wrong about anything, so as a gesture of respect, I am going to be proven right when I say I am going to win, but I make no pretense that it will be easy. I've watched you. And while you have been silent so far where our match is concerned, all that tells me is that you are the wildcard. Nobody knows what to expect, nobody knows what you might or will do once that bell rings and, if you'll pardon the expression, all gloves come off! I like a little mystery, and I love a challenge! You'll provide that, I am certain, even if it does not go entirely the way that you would want it to."
Fenris approached the corner of the ring and draped the world title belt over the top turnbuckle and stared at it before he turned around...
"I think above all else, it is the Black Dragon that I look forward to facing the most. Now that I know of him, I can honestly say the reputation precedes him. One day it will be one on one, but for now Alex Jones? We will have to just make the most out of this situation. Hoping Jake decides to take up Travis's time and vice versa, leaving you and me to deal with one another."
He smiled.
"But we'll see. So ... Black Dragon? Interesting. It makes me think of other dragons you read about. Stories. Fairy tales. Mythology. Take Smaug for example. Perhaps most famous dragon in modern literature, from the Hobbit. A beast that laid waste to a kingdom and hoarded its treasure for decades until the smallest of arrows pierced it's heart."
"A little closer to my own heart would be Fafnir, a dragon from Norse tales. Originally a dwarf that was cursed into dragon form. The strongest and most aggressive of three brothers, Fafnir guarded his father's treasure of gold and jewels, using poisoned breath to protect what was his and instilled terror into the hearts of the Norse, human and dwarf alike. It was only an act of jealousy that brought his demise at the machinations of his own brother, Sigurd."
"Of course, there were others. Krak's dragon in Polish tales. Yamata no Orochi from Japanese mythology. Really..."
He held up a hand and shook his head.
"There are too many to mention, but do you understand what I am getting at? The reference and implication? Each of these dragons, just as you do now, coveted something. Whether it be a woman or something more... golden..."
His hand caressed the center golden plate of the championship belt.
"... in the end, was always the same result. The treasure was the dragon's downfall. The dragon's greed and desire cost them in the end. You want what is mine, Alex. I know you do and I can not fault you for that. You know what it is like to hold championship gold, many times over as a matter of fact. Some say I'm arrogant as fuck and you know something? I think I deserve to be! And I've heard Austin call you cocky, well after reading up on the shit you've accomplished, I'd dare say you deserve to be too! That just brings us to the here and now."
"The White Wolf in the ring against the Black Dragon. Sounds like something out of a fantasy tale, and for the raging beast that you are, for the damage that you will cause, just consider me the knight in shining armor that is the end of the fire breathing beast. After all Alex, I beat one Honor Champion."
He winked into the camera.
"I think I can take another."
