Baby Steps
”Well, here we go”
Johanna stood outside the door of Wolfslair, her hand gripping the black gear bag dangling down and swinging as she reached out with her free hand and pushed the door open. It clicked, the sound hit her in the face as well as the feeling of the air. It was competition. But something else that Johanna hadn’t felt. As she moved into the main room, her eyes glided over the large open area. A weight room in the corner, lockers and locker rooms too, two rings down the back, grappling mats and groups of men and women talking and laughing.
An office to the side, where Alex stood talking to a woman with long dark hair, the two of them going over some paperwork, he smiled and she gave him a nod turning towards a few of the members. Another woman, long dark blond hair, impeccable make up and a beautiful face but also strong, muscular and obviously fit, walked up to Alex getting him to sign something before giving him a kiss and turning away, the woman looking up with a smile seeing Johanna and approaching her. [color-orange]”Johanna?”[/color] She gave a nod, a slow one. ”Alex tools me you’d be coming today, I’m Sonya Jones, I usually handle all the contracts and membership rules...boring admin stuff and I’m here to answer any questions.”
She seemed nice enough, giving Johanna a smile but also not shooting a judgemental look like others do. She smiled back, following Sonya through the gym towards the office, Alex talked to someone, a large man, at least six foot six,, long hair and a beard, it was Austin James Mercer, a world champion. Johannas eyes widened, champions did train here. ”Where do I set up and leave my stuff?”
Sonya opened the door to the office showing Johanna inside, a series of well labeled filing cabinets laid back against the wall, two desks sat side by side, it looked organised, official and professional. JOhanna placed her bag down as Sonya pulled out a plastic sleeve, Johannas name and information on a adhesive strip, she set it down in front of Jo, with a pen, folding her arms over her chest. ”Standard boiler plate contracts, read over them if you like, there is a key to as locker as well as one for the roller door at the front. Welcome to Wolfslair.” She held out her hand, Johanna raised an eyebrow and took it, Sonya knew her shit, writing in clauses that were easy to understand, easy to follow. Johanna quickly scribbled her name on the bottom and took the key.
”Thank you.”
Sonya gave her a nod and took the paperwork, Johanna grabbed her bag making her way out onto the floor, looking down at the key number before making her way to the lockers, taking her gear, stuffing the bag in and taking a deep breath before sliding her rash guard over the top. Alex moved over, his arms folding over his chest. ”I’m glad you came, it’s good to see you here Jo” Johanna turned, straightening up her gear and saying nothing, Alex moved around to her side, keeping his arms folded as if he was letting her see the rest of the gym. ”The lay out is simple, grappling, ring work, strength and conditioning. We work together, train together and have each others backs.”
Johanna shook her head and threw her hands up. ”You know this will be new to me right?...I don’t really...play nice with others…”
Her voice was low, her tone had a hint of menace. Alex cleared his throat and gave her a nod. ”We sharpen each other Jo, I get that competition is a thing for you, being able to prove how tough you are, how good you are. And we welcome that, we do.” Alex glides his eyes over to the grappling mats, leading Johanna to look over with him, Alicia Lukas was there, she slid on one knee, grabbing one of the trainees in a double leg takedown. Alicia took the girls back, sinking in a choke, she quickly tapped, Alicia let go within seconds, turning and helping her up before tapping her on the shoulder. They smiled and the girl thanked her for the lesson. ”Competition is the essence of improvement, but the catalyst is accepting to get better yourself, you should help others...we don’t hold people down here Johanna...we reach down and pull people up…”
Johanna swallowed hard, she gave Alex a nod, she understood but it felt strange. It was that bond she thought she had as a police officer. Standing by each other, helping each other. Respecting each other. But now, here she was thousands of miles away from her home, finding what she wanted to have there. ”Understood...I can respect that” Alex tapped her on the shoulder, moving toward the rings, Johanna took a deep breath and stretched, moving towards the grappling mats and the other members. This was the start….
Remember, remember….
”I haven’t had the best run lately in Sin city have I?”
Johannas voice breaks the silence, she stares out of her apartment, a third story one in New York located in Manhattan, overlooking the streets. The company had been good to her.
”I hit the ground running when I arrived. I beat some of the best in the company, women who would go on to be world champions or who had been world champions. I won the mixed tag titles, the roulette title, twice and I struck fear into the hearts of so many in this company. Members of the bombshells division would look at the card for the week to see if they had been booked on the show and if so who against, and I would watch, I would watch their reactions. And I could tell who was booked to face me. Their shoulders would slumpm they’d let out a sigh and accept their fate…”
“They were going to catch a fucking beating.”
“And win or lose with me you know you are going to come out the other side looking and feeling different.”
“I’m not just some kind of average professional wrestler, out to do just enough to win the have my hand raised. I have always been someone who liked to hurt people. Not to end their career or maim them or anything so major. But to make them remember. You just win a match people can walk backstage, drown their sorrows and forget the next week. You hurt someone, they go home, they drown their sorrows, they try to forget and then..can’t. They wonder why their arm hurts, or their knee, ankle, neck. They feel that stabbing or shooting pain and they then know...and remember you…”
Johanna pushes her hand off the wall on the side of the window, moving and turning in her apartment before reaching down and grabbing a bottle of water with a sigh.
”Being remembered. Is that what we all want? The fame and glory is nice, don’t get me wrong, I am glad that I have been able to find some form of success in America. Being able to have a nice apartment, great friends and teammates. All while avoiding the traps I see on social media and navigating my way through that kind of mine field. But, being remembered is what I need and want. Remembered like my opponent Danielle Weston.”
“See, Dani has been in SCW a while now, been the SCW bombshells champion, shown the world how awesome she can be but has also taken time off at points. And in this world and this day and age when people have such small minds and forgetful memories it is telling about a person and the impact they have made when they can take time away from all this madness and still be remembered and not forgotten. Dani was gone for a while, and when she returned it was like she never left.”
“She and I head into our match this week and we have had the same amount of matches in company history. Twenty Nine, this will be our thirtieth matches.”
“Crazy to think about isn’t it?”
“Even crazier when you realise our records themselves are rather comparable. Similar wins, losses, the differences being that Dani can call herself a former world bombshells champion and I can’t. It’s an opportunity that has eluded me thus far yet, Dani’s return has been met with fanfare and so many have talked about how they remember her talent, and how she could recapture the bombshells championship again…”
Joanna takes another sip of water before placing the bottle back on the table, her hands also laying flat now as she lets out a breath.
”Yet, people don’t say anything about me, my name is tossed aside like I’m just another person in this company. Ready to be fed to a returning “legend”. Just a name on a loist of people that Krystal Wolfe has conquered, just a name on a list of people who have never been the Bombshells champion. And why? Am I that easily shoved aside and thrown under bthe rug Danielle?”
“You have returned, you beat Mikah one of the most dominant bombshells champions in history and despite the fact she has not been the same woman she was by any stretch that win was popped huge, promoted huge. I beat and in her prime Roxi Johnson and no one...NO ONE cared. I beat Keira, I beat Mercedes, I destroyed people as a mixed tag team champion and people forget...people forget what I am capable of.”
“So now I have to make them remember. I have to make them and you remember. So I am going to have to do something to you that you will never forget, that you will be reminded of every single time you go to do ANYTHING. And it won’t be personal Dani, I don’t hate you, I don’t know you well enough to hate you….in fact I admire you. I admire your past, your accomplishments and your success. But, when you admire something, sometimes you want to take it…”
“And that is what I want to do...take a little of it for myself. So at Climax control that is what I plan to do, I refuse to be just another name….another name on the list of people Danielle Weston beat in her triumphant return tour of Sin city wrestling…”
