The year was no longer new, it was already moving. Victoria Lyons stood alone in her kitchen barefoot on the cold tile, her phone lay in front of her occasionally buzzing with notifications she hadn't opened yet. She had the internet qualifier tournament already on her mind, doing what it always does, creating hope in people who don't understand the cost.
She moved through the kitchen to pour herself a cup of tea, every moment clean and precise like she's always been both on and off the camera. The Bombshell Internet Championship lay on the mantelpiece in the living room upon the stand she had created, which once held the Bombshell Roulette Championship.
She had broken records with that championship, the longest reign numbers that still haven't been touched. Some called it dominance, some called it inevitability but she always considered it control.
Now she sought that same permanence with her new championship, The Bombshell Internet Championship, she had already defended her Championship once against Harper Mason and now she had to wait and see who won this tournament and become her next victim.
She did however have some control over the outcome, an opportunity to eliminate a threat. Not Zenna or Bea, she saw them as nothing more than noise. What she needed to do was eliminate an actual threat to her reign, and that threat came in the form of Bella Madison.
She laughed slightly to herself at the thought as she stirred, some sugar and cream into her tea. The spoon clinked against the porcelain cup Victoria watched as the cream disappeared into it and the sugar dissolved without resistance, a reminder of how quickly something lost its shape once pressure was applied.
She would deliver that same reminder to Bella Madison.
The concerning thing was that Bella Madison would adapt and Victoria knew that Bella wasn't somebody who crumbled when things went wrong, she recalibrated. There was no wasted motion, Bella wrestled like she trusted herself completely, with the kind of confidence that didn't ask permission.
That's why she needed to be eliminated, and eliminated early. It was all about efficiency. Victoria knew there were other threats in the locker room looming, the Alexandra Calaway's, Frankie Hollidays, and Amelia Reynolds of the world to name a few. Mercedes Vargas could strike at any time trying to reclaim what Victoria had taken from her. Eliminating a threat like Bella Madison now meant one less problem to deal with.
Timing was everything here, she needed to remove Bella before any narratives could build and her consistency turned into belief spreading, because that's where Bella became most dangerous. She was the kind of competitor that people rallied behind once belief took hold and she was capable of using that to make herself stronger. Victoria needed to end that belief before it began and at the same time send a message to the rest of the Bombshells competing in this tournament what awaits them at the end of it.
She looks to the Internet Championship resting on the mantelpiece, it was hers now and more importantly with Vincent's recent loss she was the only champion the Lyons Den had to offer. In a way that sat wrong with her because she knew Vincent he didn't process loss like everybody else. He internalized it until it became chaos and that chaos turned to action, and usually somebody ended up getting hurt.
“Don't do something stupid..” she muttered to herself.
But he would and she knew it, and she would likely be the one cleaning it up once again. She didn't have time to worry about that now however whatever chaos Vincent might unleash would come later. Right now she needed to focus on reinforcing her own structure.
She took a sip of her tea and moved toward the mantelpiece standing directly in front of her Championship now, she smiled and reached out readjusting it with a small but intentional motion. It had to rest perfectly.
“This is how it stays.” she said quietly.
This wasn't about humiliating Bella or proving superiority, it was about drawing a clean and early line and reminding everyone exactly who the Bombshell Internet Champion was and that if they intend to win this tournament, they would find the closer they got to the Bombshell Internet Championship, the less room they were given to breathe.
She didn't need to touch her championship again, it was aligned perfectly, as was she. She turned from the mantlepiece as her phone buzzed nearby. She had no urgency to engage. The world could wait until she was finished thinking.
The rest of the Bombshells in the tournament would feel this match even if they weren't part of it, and they would all see the same result. That momentum died at the feet of Victoria Lyons.
She took a sip of her tea, let in the warmth steadied her staring out the window knowing that somewhere out there Bella Madison was out there training and believing that this was her route back to the Bombshell Internet Championship.
It wasn't. This was where her dream ended not out of any disrespect from Victoria, but with more of a cruel sort of respect that made Victoria want to fight harder and become more dangerous.
Her phone buzzed again, this time she glanced down and grabbed it off the countertop, a message from Darian.
‘Do we need any almond milk?’
She laughed to herself at the mundaneness of it all, her normal life had a way of intruding when she least expected it. She took a glance inside the refrigerator.
‘Yes, we're almost out, grab some mayo as well.’
She sent the reply to Darian and his response came back moments later.
‘Roger that.’
She locked the phone and set it back on the counter.
She looked across the kitchen island to her Championship on the living room mantlepiece once more. The first climax of control of the new year would not be a performance, it would be a demonstration.
A demonstration of who was really going to be in control in 2026.
__________
Victoria's heels clicked on the floors of the Lyon's den as she made her way through before stopping herself in front of her brother who was off in one of his corners sulking to himself. He didn't look at her when she approached and I told her everything she needed to know.
“You should be careful.” she said “You just lost a championship and I've seen it before. This is the part where you usually think two inches in front of your face and end up doing something reckless.”
“What is this?” said Vincent annoyed “Some sort of warning?”
“I'm just trying to prevent you from doing something reckless that ruins things for everyone.” she replied.
“I told you.” he said “I have no sister, I don't need you anymore.”
“It's not about what you need Vincent.” Victoria said “It's about what the den needs as a whole, the more championships we all bring to this place the stronger we all look.”
“Fine.” said Vincent “Then I'm going after the world championship.”
There it was, just as she suspected.
“That's Eddie's lane.” She said, folding her arms “You need to focus on bringing back the roulette championship.”
“Since when do you call the shots?” said Vincent.
“Since I've proven to be the most successful champion around here.” Victoria said “Of all of us. We need to make the den stronger for everybody, that means I keep my championship, you take back your roulette championship and Eddie captures the world championship. Three champions, one structure. That's how we make the Lyons Den as a whole untouchable.”
“He's had his chances and opportunities.” said Vincent “And he's failed them all. Why should I stay in place while everybody pats him on the back and says -hey good job buddy, maybe next time?- how many times are we going to give him before we admit that maybe he's not the guy?”
“Because Eddie has patience.” She said “He gets chances because people trust him not to burn down the house if something doesn't go his way.”
“And what about you?” asked Vincent "Do you trust him more than me?”
“I trust him not to self implode.” she said “We were Tag Team Champions together, we've had our disagreements and we don't always see eye to eye but despite all that Eddie leads people believe in him and he makes them feel safe. He's not someone who's just replaceable.”
“So I'm just supposed to be background noise?” Vincent said with a snarky tone
“You're supposed to be focused.” Victoria said “Focus on taking back what you lost, the Roulette Championship. Show that you build, instead of tearing the walls down.”
“You make all this talk about people believing in him.” said Vincent “About feeling safe around him do you really think they all feel that way about you.?”
“No.” She said firmly “In fact a lot of them still hate me. People don't like how I win or the actions I choose to take. They don't like how unapologetic I am for any of it, but they respect me because I make no excuses and I stand by everything that I do or say. That's the difference between us Vincent. I earned my respect without needing to be loved.”
“So you're the standard now?” said Vincent.
“I'm the example.” she said “I'm proof that you don't have to be liked to be effective, and you don't need to be adored to be respected. But you do need to have control.”
“I am in control.” he replied “And I don't need to answer to anybody but myself.”
“No. You're not.” said Victoria “That's the problem and I'm trying to keep you from making it a problem for everybody else. You think you have all the winning cards in your hand, but you need to play them carefully because you might not have as much room to maneuver as you think you do.”
She turned on her heel and walked away from her brother. As she rounded the corner she quickly got out her phone and made a quick phone call.
“Yeah it's me, I need you guys on standby, just in case.” She before clicking the phone shut.
She was still annoyed when she made her exit accidentally bumping into her cousin Zayvion Lyons on the way out.
“Watch where you’re going!” she growled at him.
“Sorry…” he said.
She rolled her eyes at him and walked away toward the exit. Her brother was becoming enough of a problem, she didn't need to deal with one of her uncles leeching bastards right now. She didn't want to worry about her brother either but his actions could affect everybody, herself included. Most importantly however, still had a threat to deal with.
__________
The cameras slowly fade on Victoria Lyons proudly wearing the Bombshell Internet Championship around her waist, resting there undeniable. She doesn't look at the camera at first, keeping her hands clasped behind her back as she stares surveying the area as if it's a territory that belongs to her.
“People think the calendar changes things.” she began “That January offers redemption, and time itself will reset the balance. But the truth is it doesn't, all the new year does is reveal who understands consequences and who mistakes opportunity for destiny.”
She pauses.
“This tournament will do exactly what it's meant to do.“ she said “Create hope, and hope is expensive. Are you hearing me Bella Madison?”
A faint smile curls on her face.
“You believe this is your way back don't you?” she said “That this tournament is a correction. That somewhere along the line the Bombshell Internet Championship was taken from you and now the universe has given you a way to make things right.”
She shrugs.
"I completely understand that." she said "You're not someone who collapses when things go wrong and when pressure hits you adapt and honestly that makes you dangerous. You know how to recalibrate and keep moving forward, and that's why I cannot let you proceed. You are a threat and I'm going to have to do what queens do when there's a legitimate threat to their reign.”
She pauses.
“Eliminate it.” she said firmly.
She lets those two words hang in the air moment gazing confidently into the camera.
“I know the importance of our match Bella.” said Victoria “More than anyone realizes. For you it's about gaining a victory over the champion, advancing in the tournament and using it a narrative to create this hope that you ride all the way to the finals, and for me it's about making sure that story never happens. It's about removing a key player from the battlefield.”
She exhales slightly.
“Some people might call it fear, and say that I'm afraid of you.” she said “But fear is loud and fear panics. This is is calculation, I'm not eliminating a threat because I'm worried about losing. I'm eliminating a threat because I refuse to let uncertainty exist in my queendom."
She keeps eyes locked with the camera.
“You're dangerous when momentum is allowed to spread.” Victoria said "And that's the part that I won't allow. I won't allow there to be any belief in Bella Madison winning this tournament and one thing I'm very good at is killing belief.”
She smirks arrogantly.
“It's a fragile thing, belief.” she said “People think it's powerful because it spreads quickly and it's contagious, but they don't understand that that's exactly what makes it easy to destroy. Because belief only survives when it's protected, when one allows it to breathe and I'm not going to allow it to breathe this time Bella. I'm going to suffocate it before it even begins.”
She keeps her words confident and firm and takes a few calculated steps closer to the camera.
"I know what people say about me." she continued "They say I'm cold and the ruthless and I've crossed lines I didn't need to be crossed but they never asked who drew those lines in the first place you want to talk about morality let's talk about how many smiled at you Bella how many shook your hand and told you next time while quietly stepping in front of you every chance they got and benefited from you staying hopeful because hope kept you compliant."
She paused.
“That's not me, I don't lie to my threats.” she said adjusting her championship “You don't get hope with me Bella you get honesty and the truth is if you're allowed to build momentum you will destabilize everything I've worked to control and control is my responsibility.”
Another slow step forward.
“A true queen doesn't wait till the castle walls are cracked.” she said “She doesn't wait until the rebellion has come in full force and the crowd is chanting its name. She crushes it quietly before anyone realizes there was ever a chance. I'm not coming to punish you Bella, I'm coming to manage you, and when that bell rings there won't be any anger. There will only be precision as I proceed to eliminate you as a threat. This isn't about embarrassing you or teaching any lessons, this is about ending the conversation.”
She pauses.
“You're going to feel it Bella.” she said “It'll be subtle at first but then every surge of confidence will run into a wall you didn't see coming, the crowd will begin to realize that hope was a mistake, and when that realization hits you that's when the belief dies.”
She smirks confidently.
“And when belief dies.” she continued “Something else takes its place… reality.”
She taps the plate of her championship.
“People love to cheer for a hero.” Victoria said “Somebody refusing to stay down and continues that uphill fight. They cheer for it because it makes them feel brave, but bravery without leverage is just exhaustion. You will fight, I expect that. You will scrape together everything you've learned just to keep yourself standing, and for a moment it might even look like it's working. But that will be the moment when it ends, because I don't break people at their weakest. I break them at their most confident, letting them believe they found an opening and the tide is turning before I remind them who controls the current.”
She pauses.
“You need to win this match to gain all that momentum.” she said “But momentum can only exist if someone allows it to continue and I won't. You're not the first threat I've identified Bella, you're just the next one. Unlike some people, I don't ignore threats and act like they disappear if you do. So when I beat you at Climax Control, the narrative doesn't continue, it collapses. The crowd gets no fairytale story. They get confirmation that the crown is not slipping, and every other bombshell in this tournament gets to witness what horrors await them at the end of it.”
She runs her fingers along the plate of her championship being sure to draw the attention.
“At Climax Control you're going to throw everything you have at me.” she says “You're going to dig deep and reach for something emotional because you feel like it's your destiny to reclaim this championship but you have to understand your time is done, and there's a new champion in town and she doesn't apologize. So when this is all over people won't talk about how close you came they'll talk about how hope failed you and didn't survive the collision.”
She exhales.
“Queens don't need permission to rule.” she said “They just remove what challenges the order. So step forward Bella Madison, bring your hope and your momentum and your belief. I'll be sure to take all of it from you.”
She looks to the camera with one final smirk that lingers as everything fades to black.
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