[GKD]

Author's note: Goth and I did the portion of the segment where Ken and Goth are talking together, each from our own perspective.

“God, this sucks,” Ken says aloud to no one in particular. Waking up in a strange hotel is never fun, especially not when you’re in scenic Scottsdale, Arizona and your new wife is 1,996 miles away in Baltimore, Maryland, not that he had looked it up or anything. He immediately rolls over and texts Kyra a simple “First thought when I rise.” It was his way of saying “Good morning.”

Ken rolls out of bed, wearing an old t-shirt emblazoned with the likenesses of his friends The Shadow, Ataxia, Mia Rayne, and the recently departed Dorian Hawkhurst, known during their time together as “The Forsaken.” Dorian’s death had created quite the adjustment for the Davison family. In fact, Chloe Hawkhurst was in the process of moving to their house from Philadelphia at that exact moment. Ken felt like he should be home, but catching an early morning flight the day of his match with Goth left too much room for error. Besides, he had made arrangements to meet up with his friend and stablemate for breakfast.

He stumbles into the bathroom to begin getting ready, taking a moment to check the time, something that he forgets about upson seeing that as Kyra has answered his text.

A Cheshire cat smile crosses his face. He grins so wide that his toothbrush falls out of his mouth and onto the floor. When he got home, they planned to continue trying to conceive, but that’s a story you’d find on a [b[much[/b] different website.

“Damnit!” he blurts out and he reaches down and picks up the toothbrush, disposing of it in the wastebasket under the sink. “Guess I’ll have to remember to buy another one later.”

He spits into the sink and rinses his mouth, changing to go meet with the Gothic One. He begins to gather his things, grabbing his wallet, key and phone. A ding goes off and he looks down, peering upon a message from what seems to be a Pennsylvania area code. ‘215-555-6464. Don’t know that one,’ he thinks to himself. Still something compels him to open the message.

“hey. its chloe. thanx again for lettin me stay wit u. should b there in a couple hours. kyra knows. good luck with your match. see u when ur home.”

Ken shoves his phone in his pocket and smiles. He was glad that they had expanded their family, even if it wasn’t in the traditional way. There had been a lot of positives and a lot of negatives in the last three and a half weeks. Now, it was time to find out if his upcoming match with Goth would be a positive or a negative.

The 3rd Avenue Grille at Scottsdale Marriott Old Town wasn’t particularly fancy. What it is, for Ken Davison at least, is convenient. It’s standard restaurant faire, brown oak tables coated with urethane to protect the wood, fake marble countertops, and between the two different styles of chairs, the first being a beige with these hideous darker brown circular patterns, the other being an odd mix of colors that looks like the unholy mixture of mustard and asparagus. Whoever was in charge of the decor was very much overpaid. Still, the place was decent enough. The food was reasonably priced and Ken was staying in the hotel the restaurant is attached to. Wearing black jeans and an orange polo, he made sure to wear something that would make him easy to find without being too obnoxiously loud.

It was in these moments that Ken hated being away from Kyra and Adina… and now, Chloe Hawkhurst who has moved in with the family following her father’s passing. They had spent the day together, the four of them, before Ken and Kyra offered Chloe a place in their home. Chloe and her now deceased father, Dorian, were long time friends and students of Ken’s. For perspective, the Hawkhurst’s made their in ring debuts when Chloe was a mere nine years old. Mind you, Chloe was only allowed to serve as a manager because no company in their right mind would allow a nine year old to wrestle? That was ten years ago. Now nineteen, with no one else left in the world, Chloe Hawkhurst had decided to accept their offer to join the Davison household. In fact, she should be in the process of settling in as we speak.

Nursing his coffee, he sits looking down at his phone, catching up on the latest comings and goings in the world while he waits. Goth and Lady Melissa see Ken already sitting at one of the tables.  Ken stands up and offers Goth and Melissa his hand.

“Good to see you, big man.”

Goth nods his head in approval before extending his hand towards Ken and shakes it. Ken makes sure to take note of the strength of Goth's grip. Those hands could be trying to bend him in half later.

“Good to see you Ken, I brought Melissa with me. I hope you don’t mind.”

“Of course. If it wasn’t our week with Adina I probably would have brought Kyra along. It’s the whole newlywed thing, I suppose. I’ve been trying to get her to come over here since I joined up.”

Goth nods his head, looking over at his fiance as he softly squeezes her hand before they decide to sit down across Ken. As if he wasn't missing Kyra enough as it was, seeing their two lovebirds hand in hand made him miss her more. The touch of her skin, the smell of her perfume, all of that disappeared as Goth's voice snapped Ken back to reality.

“I hope we will get the opportunity to meet the lucky lady, I think Melissa would love to get to know her better. Seeing us men are still dominating the Saviors”

He chuckles as Melissa gives him a fake scowl. Kyra probably would have shoved an elbow into his ribs. Guess there was some silver lining to her absence.

“It’s a good thing. We’re still celebrating because her sister just won the World Title over in UGWC where we are the Cooperative Champs together. With all this shit going on with Knox and Masque, we needed a bit of good news.”

Ken’s expression sits somewhere between his recent joy but the concern for Amber.

“Sorry,” Ken says with a certain softness in his tone. “Didn’t mean to lean right into the heavy stuff. It’s just been… I don’t know, man. Mac’s been a brother to me for almost 20 years. Even if Amber still wanted me to turn into a chalk outline, I couldn’t just stand back and watch this happen. But, what am I doing? Sitting here and watching it happen because I’ve been told that the next time I put my hands on one of the female talents, I’m done.”

Ken kind of looks away, not sure if bringing that up was a breech of etiquette or not. Goth nods his head in agreement, he stares at Ken for a moment or two before letting out a sigh of his own.

“I understand where you are coming from Ken, even though I know you all just for over 6 months now. I can tell that we are a unit, a family of sorts. And in past federations I have been in the ring with some of the toughest women out there, if someone would have done to Melissa what Masque did to Amber…. I…”

His words trail off for a moment, staring at the beautiful young woman that has an expression on her face that nobody will harm her without a butt kicking. The similarities between Goth and Melissa and Kyra and herself were almost scary.

“But the important thing is that we have each other’s backs, nobody is going to mess with us and will live to tell the tale.”

Melissa joins in, offering her support.

“And if Kat doesn’t finish the job this week against Masque? Well I will gladly take my chance in doing so”

“There is definitely a line forming, that’s for sure. Besides, I’ve got a little surprise in store for Masque myself. I’m still working out all the details, but I think Masque underestimated exactly how many friends Amber has.”

“I am sure that everything will come to be as it was meant to be, Ken,” Goth says as he grabs the menu and looks to make an order. “But perhaps we should order something before we go and dwell deeper into Savior’s business”

“I think that is an excellent idea.”

The Saviors triumvirate disengage for a moment while they are looking over the menu.

“I think I will order the Southwest Omelette." Says Goth before turning his attention to Melissa.

“I'll go for the Arugula Salad, myself.”

Goth turns his attention to Ken, who looks up from his menu.

“Egg White Veggie Frittata for me. Not my first choice, but the doctor’s been getting on me about my numbers.”

“I am glad we got this opportunity to talk about where we should go next Ken, knowing that Mac is not able to be our leader right now. And also the mere fact that we are somehow booked in a match together this week, makes things rather…. Interesting wouldn’t you agree?”

Ken noticeably scowls.

“Pardon the language, but it’s complete and total horse shit. They have seen me standing in the ring, night after night, talking about how the Saviors don’t work the Saviors. It is a complete and total slap in the face from the office. Probably retribution from that whole Amber Ryan incident.”

Goth sits back, places his hands in front of his face and stares at Ken who waits expectantly for a response.

“What has surprised me the most is that you have made it very clear that you wanted the world champion, now I understand that we do not assign matches and decide who we face. But I do agree that putting us in a ring together as opponents makes no sense. Merely the fact that we both are seasoned veterans, who do not back down from a fight is the only understandable reason I could come up with why…. But it is still sad…. Forgive me if I prefer to use the lighter tones of logic.”

He gives a half assed smile. Ken is, in that moment, not so jovial.

“As far as I am concerned, if you want the shot at the Internet Championship, it’s yours. I’m not worried about championships right now. The only reason I’m even remotely concerned with the World Championship is because that coward Matt Knox holds it. The only reason, and I am sure the both of you know this, that I haven’t taken Matt Knox and torn him asunder is because I promised Mac I would let him handle this. If there is anything left, if being the operative word, then I will finish the job.”

Ken audibly scoffs.

“Fucking Arschgeige!”

Goth’s expression turns into a scowl as well, knowing what it must be like for Mac as he had to watch his wife get assaulted. Having to deal with Knox and how everyone else has come together. He looks at Melissa and then back at Ken.

“I have unfinished business to deal with our beloved Internet champion. I don’t mind losing to a better man, but the way he has done so infuriates me. To the level that I had send Kris his brother packing, hoping that the kid that wanted to live his brother’s dream will never come back again to pull that stunt on me again. So at least I thank you for allowing me to have that opportunity, but at least I do hope that seeing that we are booked to fight…. That at least we will make the world watch us compete as men with respect for each other.”

Ken shrugs. “I mean, if that’s what you want. We are, if nothing else, professionals. I just have to be honest here, I feel like I am going back on my word if I do.”

Goth stares at him, knowing what it means to go back on your own word.

“Forgive me if I made you feel that way by asking you to do so, perhaps we should try something that would benefit both of us??”

“If you’re okay with this, then I’m okay with this. Besides, it will be nice to have a match where I don’t have to worry about watching my back. Should someone be stupid enough to try and get in Saviors business, that’s their funeral.”

“I give you my word that you will not have to worry about me or Melissa, she will be a spectator. And indeed IF someone dares to interfere…. We will show the world what the Saviors are truly capable off by handling their own business.”

He smiles at Ken

“So I suggest we will have a classic match this Sunday, before we turn our attention to the job at hand.”

“Then that, sir, is exactly what we will do.” Ken takes a quick sip of his coffee. “But, first, breakfast.”

The waitress comes over and the group begins ordering food, getting to know each other in a less professional manner. This could be dangerous. As it says in Marui Puzo’s ”The Godfather”, “Keep your friends close and your enemies closer.”

”Godly” Ken Davison in the middle of the Sonoran Desert. The sun hangs low, descending on the horizon, glowing like a supernova in the skyline. The peaks of the Sierra San Pedro Martir and Laguna Mountains block the sun's rays, while at the same time providing one hell of a view. The sun is so bright, in fact, that the cactus almost appear to be prickly silhouettes and not actual vegetation.

’I really wish Kyra was here,’ he thinks while getting himself in position to film. He had really wanted to wear his robes, but even at sundown, the desert heat would simply not allow it. So, there he stood in dark blue denim shorts and the Forsaken t-shirt he was wearing in the morning. He takes a moment to put his hand on the cactus. He feels nothing, the side effect of the nerve damage incurred when he was crucified. In hindsight, Ken probably should have made better career decisions. But, here he was, hand on a cactus in the middle of the Arizona desert for no reason other than he couldn’t think of anywhere more appropriate to film his promo.

“The men in the Sin City Wrestling office have put me in a very peculiar position. Week after week after week after week I have sat here and told the world that Saviors don't work Saviors. This week I have been scheduled to compete against my stablemate, my friend, my brother, the Gothic One.”

Ken takes a deep breath in and lets what feels like a deeper sigh out.

“Obviously, someone wants to make a liar out of me. That's all well and good, because I have seen people try to make their entire careers by doing that. In this case, it's not an opponent that is trying to make me look bad, but that doesn’t bother me, either. What bothers me is that I have been put in a position to go back on my word when I have made my career, my reputation by telling people the truth. So, what I am going to do is what I have always done and that is to continue to tell you the truth. That is because I am a man of integrity.”

“When you go through your career calling yourself “Godly”, it is important, dare I say imperative, to familiarize yourself with all sorts of holy texts. You never know when someone will try to take words from those texts and twist them to use them against you. In this particular case, I stumbled across a verse in the Mormon book of Doctrine and Covenants. In chapter 124, verse 15 of the book says “Blessed is my servant Hyrum Smith; for I, the Lord, love him because of the integrity of his heart, and because he loveth that which is right.”  While I do not remember the exact context of the verse, I do remember reading that and thinking and thinking that that is the most extreme praise, to hold somebody in such high esteem. I know I like to use the phrase
“That's who I am as a person,”  but this, this is who I want to be as a person. This is who I try to be as a person. This is why I went to Goth himself to have a conversation. This is why I talked to my opponent before my match with him. Granted, he is extended a certain amount of respect because of who he is in my life. That does not change how I am approaching this match. The only thing it changes is how I am approaching my opponent.”

Ken removes his hand from the cactus, not feeling the glochidia on the way out, either. He looks down and removes the couple that remain in his hand as he continues speaking.

“Perhaps that is why I felt so impassioned to talk about integrity today. Simply talk about good, old fashioned, personal, and professional integrity. Integrity to me means being a man of your word. It means doing what is right, regardless of the consequence. It means that when you talk the talk you must follow it by walking the walk. Words mean nothing when there is no follow through with your actions. Jack Washington, if I were not heading him off at the pass by saying this,  I know the first words out of his mouth would be questioning my integrity. I said I was going to defeat him for my Internet championship, and I failed to do so. That was most certainly not a breach of integrity. I fully intended to be a man of my word and unfortunately I was not able to do that.”

“Another aspect of integrity is honesty. It's not just being honest with other people come up but also being honest with yourself. I can be honest and I can admit that I was not good enough to retain my championship that night. After that setback, I told everybody I was going to show my worthiness. I was going to show that I deserved my spot on the Sin City wrestling roster. I feel that since that moment I have done exactly that. The fact that I have not lost a one on one matchup since that night tells you everything you need to know, especially considering the quality of my opposition.”

Ken kneels down, placing his hand on the desert sand, taking a measure of the temperature on his fingertips.

“Under normal circumstances, I would sit here and try to hype up the conflict between myself and my opponent. In this instance, I simply cannot do that, part of that whole honesty thing I was preaching about.  Speaking about the quality of my opposition, Goth is going to be my toughest opponent to date… And he will be my opponent.”

“I realized earlier in the day when I was speaking with him that part of maintaining your integrity is keeping your word. I know what I said about not working against my fellow saviors. I'll be clear that it was never my intent. Be that as it may, if I were to refuse this match, if I refused to wrestle the Gothic one, it would belie my professional integrity. Above all else, I am a professional wrestler. This is my vocation. This is what I do for a living. This is why I am paid. This is how I provide for my family. That means that I have to fight Goth. It does not mean that I have to hurt him. That I have to play with his mind and get into his head. It means that I need to face him, as a gentleman, as a man of my word. Having spoken with him, we both realize that this is something that we have to do. For the sake of our careers, we are going to do this. That isn't to say that there's not some hesitation. We have both been at this a long time. We have seen how a match such as this can tear friendship's apart. It is a proverbial minefield, but one we are ready to step through.”

Ken stands back up, wiping his hands off on the legs of his shorts.

“Goth, I know we talked about having a wrestling classic that would be talked about for the ages. That would honestly be an amazing thing to have happened, but that's not why I'm taking this match. I have my eyes set on Matt Knox. I do not care about getting another shot at the Internet championship. I know you have unfinished business with Jack Washington, so when or lose, I want you to have that match with Jack Washington. What is the most important thing for myself, the thing I want most in this match, is to defeat you so I can continue building my momentum. It's not what we discussed, but it is what I have to do. I don't want to beat you, I want to go through you. I don't want to do this to cause you any harm. I want to do this because I want to erase any and all doubts about what I am capable of. Period.”

“I recognize the threat that you pose to my winning streak. You are one of the biggest, strongest, most experienced veterans we have on this roster. I do not expect that I will be able to outsmart you. What I expect to do is something I have done time and time again, and that is beat impossible odds.”

Ken stops dead in his tracks, placing his hand over his heart and looking down at his chest. The look on his face tells us this isn’t going to be one of his witty setups, but that there is something serious going through his head.

“May 19, 2019. I was walking down the street, playing Pokemon GO. I remember the day very clearly because it was community day and a shiny torchic had just appeared on my screen. I was walking with my daughter Chloe. Everything went white. There was no chest pain. There was no sharp shooting pain going down my arm. The lights just went out. I came to about 30 seconds later. Chloe was sitting there, grabbing my phone so she could call 911. I foolishly told her not to do it, because I did not understand exactly what happened. The restaurant that I passed out in front of to get me a glass of water, took some time to drink it and when I felt like I had my bearings enough, we simply walked home. I went to the doctor because I fell and hit my head on a brick wall when I passed out. Sure as shit, I was diagnosed with another concussion.”

“I wish I could say that was the end of the story, but it was only the beginning. I went a week and a half later for a follow up appointment. During that appointment my blood pressure dropped to 70/50. I was not allowed to leave. They would not even let me leave the room to use the bathroom. A few minutes later I was loaded into an ambulance and brought to the emergency room. That was where we discovered that I had a Widowmaker heart attack. Only 1% of people who suffer from that kind of heart attack survive the fact that I did not go to the hospital until 10 days later means I'm not only should have died from the heart attack itself, but had less than a 1000th of a percent chance of surviving because I didn't go to the hospital. Needless to say, I know a thing or two about impossible odds.”

Ken stops and gives the camera a knowing smile, not one of cockiness, as you would expect. Rather, it was a smile of relief and happiness.

“I understand the necessity of this match. I hope that  I have sufficiently explained my reasoning for accepting this match. I hope that you all understand my motivation for coming at Goth with everything I have. Most importantly, I hope you all understand why I have to do this.  For the first time in a long time I can walk into a match and say it is strictly professional. Win, lose, or draw, I will stand up in the middle of that ring and I will shake Goth's hand, and I will show the world that even when the Saviors do have to work the Saviors, they will not be divided.”

Ken walks over to his phone and turns off the recording, then immediately begins tearing up as he dials the phone. After a couple of rings, Kyra answers.

“Hey, babe.” Ken’s voice is noticeably shaky. A fact that Kyra is quick to pick up on.

“Hey, you.. What’s going on?  Is everything okay?”

“I just wanted to tell you how happy I am that I’m actually around for you and the girls. That’s it.”

““Our family wouldn’t be complete without you.”

“I just got to thinking about the heart attack I had a few years ago and how I was told I should have died and how everything fell in to place and…”

Kyra interrupts Ken who was in the process of creating the world’s longest run on sentence.

“Hey, you’re here.  You’re here and life is good.  No, it’s amazing.  You… God, Ken… I don’t even know what I’d do without you but luckily I don’t have to worry about it because you’re mine, and I’m yours babe.“

“Anyway, I just wanted to tell you how much I love you. Just in case.“ Ken’s tone comes up a little bit. “You’re the greatest thing that ever happened to me.”

“Are you going to be okay?”

“Yeah, I'll be fine.”

“Okay, call me when you get back to the hotel. And, don't forget to pick up a toothbrush.”

“I will. Love you”

“I love you, too.”

Ken hangs up and pushes his phone back into his pocket before walking over to his rented ATV to make his way back.