There was a stillness in the house that always came around the time of an scw live event when Victoria had one of her bigger matches more so when that match entailed defending a championship. It wasn't silent, there was never silence. There was always the low hum of the refrigerator, the distant ticking of the grandfather clock in the hallway and the occasional beep from the smoke detector that she had told Darian to take care of a week ago.
She understood why he hadn't though, their life had been busy. He had been helping her prepare for a championship defense and for their wedding. For her dress but they had already found his tuxedo and she knew he was going to look so handsome up there in his little teal bow tie.
Victoria sat cross-legged on the living room floor with her Bombshell Internet Championship resting on her lap, the dim lamp light reflecting off the gold as her fingers traced the faceplate, absently brushing over the etching of her name.
Darian rested on the couch nearby, leaning back with one arm draped over the top cushion.
“So it's time for the stare again?” he said quietly.
“It's not a stare.” she said, not looking back at him.
“It's definitely a stare.” he said “The same one you get before every one of your bigger matches, where you look like you're replaying every mistake you've ever made in 4k.”
“I've said it before.” she said “I don't make mistakes, I make adjustments.”
Darian nodded.
“And now you're adjusting for Alexandra Calaway.” he said.
…..Alexandra Calaway.
A faint smirk crept across her face as the name lingered between them. Their history wasn't something new, it wasn't built on a single promo or contract signing. It was layered and complicated. Competitive in a way that had come around from being close to personal into a strange form of respect.
She wasn't sure why she felt a simmering sense of respect now for Calaway, the same person who had become her first true rival in Sin City Wrestling. The same person that heard her throne to the ground and claimed her crown by succeeding her as queen for a day. Maybe it was Calaway's no quit attitude. The crazy bitch kept coming back for more, and that type of mentality was something Victoria couldn't help but have respect for.
"I've beaten her more times than she's beaten me, but that doesn't mean she isn't dangerous. The thing people don't understand is she's patient, she'll let you think you're dictating the pace and building momentum and then she just..” Victoria snaps her fingers. “Takes your balance and knocks the air right out of you.”
She looked down at her championship instinctively pulling it closer as if protecting it.
“She's chasing… that means she's hungry.” Victoria said “When you're chasing, you take risks because you have to. But when you're defending, everyone expects you to wrestle safe and be careful.”
“You don't do careful.” Darian said
“Careful is how you lose to Alicia Lukas.” she said the words coming out sharper than she intended them to.
She could feel the air slightly shift. The loss to Alicia Lukas still burned in her mind as she pushed herself up from the floor and headed towards the kitchen, arms folded, resting her championship on the coffee table still glinting under the dim light.
“I let her dictate the match.” Victoria admitted “I tried to out wrestle her instead of overwhelming her. I tried to beat her at her own pace and it cost me.”
She grips the edge of the little open kitchen counter with both hands.
“I let myself hesitate..” she continued “And that's not a mistake I intend to make again.”
“You think you hesitated?” Darian asked walking over and stopping a few feet behind her.
“I know I did.” she said, turning to look Darian in the eyes. “There were moments where I should have turned up the aggression and taken the risk but instead I chose to play the long game.”
She exhaled heavily.
“I refuse to make mistakes when the gold is on the line.” she said.
“So what's different?” Darian asked
“This time I remember but it feels like to walk to the back without the victory.” she said “The look on everyone's face, the disappointment they try to hide. I'm not walking into Blaze of Glory to prove I can out-think Alexandra Calaway. I'm walking in remind her that when a championship is on the line I don't escalate..”
She let her gaze meet Darian's eyes.
“I detonate.” she said.
“There's my queen.” Darian grinned.
“Queen..” she repeated quietly with a soft smile.
Funny how that moniker still carried weight with her. She no longer had a throne, Calaway had worked with her cousin Alexander Lyons to infiltrate and burn her throne to the ground. Her crown had been seized from her to be given to the next year's winner, which of course was none other than Alexandra Calaway.
Alexandra hadn't ripped the crown off her head, or pinned her for it. She had simply won it the year after. But symbolism has a funny way of blurring technicalities, and that queenlike aura still surrounded Victoria.
“I guess we're both queens in a way.” Victoria said “She won her year the same way I won mine, by surviving the chaos and outlasting the field. I can respect that.”
What she found surprising was that, that was the truth, she meant that. Alexandra Calaway didn't need to steal her moment, she went out and created her own legacy.
“She didn't dethrone me physically.” Victoria continued “But she made sure nobody forgot her name after my reign. When I won queen for a day, it felt like the beginning of something, and when she won it the year after it felt like a statement.”
“What kind of statement?” asked Darian.
“That she wasn't behind me..” Victoria replied “That she was beside me.”
“Equal.” nodded Darian.
“Yes.” said Victoria “And equals are dangerous. I've beaten her, she's beaten me, but every time we meet it shifts something. Right now the narrative wants to say that she's the one ascending and I'm stabilizing.”
“You don't believe that.” Darian chuckled.
“No.” said Victoria her eyes flashing “When Alexandra won Queen for a Day she proved she can carry a moment, but I've proven I can carry a division. She's resilient, I'll give her that. She refuses to go away and she doesn't shrink after her setbacks and that's why I've grown to respect her.”
“But respect doesn't mean restraint.” Darian said.
“It never has.” said Victoria “I can't underestimate her. That's how you lose to someone like Alexandra Calaway. You underestimate her, and she's going to sniff that out real quick and it'll be over before you even see it coming.”
She rested her elbows on the kitchen countertop.
“She's calculating and smart.” Victoria said “She's going to believe this is her moment to tip the scales in our rivalry but history says when it matters most I rise first.”
She exhaled softly.
“She won her crown and I won mine.” Victoria continued “But now it's about who walks out at Blaze of Glory with the Internet Championship.”
She paused before turning to look Darian in the eyes again.
“Alexandra Calaway has yet to actually defeat me for a championship.” she said “And she's not starting at Blaze of Glory. She's stepping into the ring with a champion who remembers what it's like to lose, and refuses to feel it twice in a row.”
She kissed Darian softly on the cheek, she may have considered Alexandra Calaway her equal, but she had no intention of letting her equal become her superior. Blaze of Glory was going to be another chapter in the Lyons/Calaway feud, and she had every intention of making sure her name remained in front.
__________
The boutique lost its charm hours ago. Victoria had found it soft and romantic when she walked in with its ivory drapes, golden mirrors, and that delicate music drifting from the speakers. Now everything felt too bright and too tight.
Too tight.
Victoria stood on the platform, it must have been her eighth dress of the day. The attendant circled her carefully adjusting a scene during the hip.
“No.” Victoria said bluntly.
“No?” the attendant replied gently
“The bust line sits unevenly when I breathe.” said Victoria.
“It's structured to move naturally.” the attendant replied.
“It pulls to the left.” Victoria replied inhaling sharply to demonstrate “There, do you see it?"
“It's very subtle…” the attendant replied.
“If I can see it then it's not subtle.” Victoria said “It's my day and my dress will be as perfect as I want it.”
It had already been six hours, eight different dresses and three glasses of that cheap complimentary champagne. These people still couldn't get her dress right. This place was starting to annoy her, and if they weren't careful they were about to meet Victoria the Bridezilla.
“Let's try the a-line again…” said the attendant carefully
“No.” said Victoria “The a-line swallowed my frame.”
“Perhaps the lace…”
“Too delicate.”
“The off-shoulder..”
“Distracting.”
The smile on the attendants face tightened subtly, as Victoria stepped down from the platform and walked directly toward the mirror wall examining herself from every angle. It was a powerful dress, with clean lines and a strong neckline but something was wrong.
She pivoted, some of the fabric shifted.
“There.“ she said, her jaw clenching, "If I turn like that it moves.”
“That's just the way satin behaves under tension.” the ascendant replied “It's not noticeable unless you're looking for it.”
“I am always looking for it.” Victoria replied sternly.
The silence lingered for a few seconds after that comment, Victoria looked at her Bombshell Internet Championship resting on a velvet chair with the rest of her belongings. She had set it there when she arrived as a reminder to them, and to herself of exactly who she was.
“If I lift my arms to hug someone does it crease?" asked Victoria.
“It's designed for movement.” replied the attendant in a patiently tested voice “Brides hug people.”
Victoria raised up both arms to experiment, the satin shifted and a ripple formed near her rib cage.
“There.” she said her jaw flexing “You saw that.”
“It relaxes back into place…” the attendant said
“It shouldn't have to relax.” Victoria cut in “It should obey.”
The attendant blinked as Victoria stepped down from the pedestal with the hem of the dress whispering across the polished floor. She walked closer to the mirror while expecting herself from every angle. She looked powerful and regal and the bodice framed her shoulders beautifully but something was wrong, and wrong was simply unacceptable.
She turned again and the fabric shifted.
“There, see.” she snapped “If I pivot like that it moves.”
“You won't be pivoting like that when you walk down the aisle.” the attendant said carefully
“You don't know that.” Victoria snapped back quickly.
She looked in the mirror again, the dress was just too traditional and too forgettable. She exhaled as though she was looking at an opponent in the mirror.
“You know what the problem is?” she said “It doesn't feel inevitable.”
“I'm sorry?” the attendant asked quietly tilting her head.
“When I walk down that aisle it needs to be inevitable.” Victoria said, "Like the conclusion of a story people have been watching for years. It needs to feel like dominance. I don't do pretty, I do definitive.”
“Perhaps you would be happy with something custom designed..” the attendance suggested.
“Custom?” Victoria questioned with a humorous laugh “You think this is about exclusivity? I don't care if it's one of one. I care if it commands a room, a wedding dress is meant to command.”
Silence.
“Just make it right.” she hissed at the attendant.
“Nothing will be right if you point out every tiny imperfection Ms Lyons.” said the attendant "I think this one really does suit you.”
“It's not right.” Victoria said sternly. “Take it off.”
The attendant didn't argue, there was no point. Victoria felt the satin go lucid and she was able to step into her regular clothes reassembling herself piece by piece.
“You know Ms Lyons.” said the attendant “Maybe today isn't the right day.”
“Excuse me?" said Victoria.
“I'm just saying maybe you need time to decide if you're choosing a wedding dress or proving something.” said the attendant.
“What's that supposed to mean?” Victoria said.
“You're searching for perfection like you're defending one of those championships.” the attendant said pointing to the Bombshell Internet Championship “But your wedding isn't a match to win.”
“Everything is a match.” snarled Victoria. “Go find a better one.”
The attendant shook her head.
“With all due respect Miss Lyons.” she said “I think you should come back another day.”
“You're asking me to leave?” Victoria said.
“I'm suggesting a reset for another day.” said the attendant.
“I don't reset.” said Victoria "I adapt.”
“Then I'm afraid we can't help you today.” the attendant replied keeping her composure
“Fine!” snapped Victoria, "You don't want my business then you don't deserve my business. Your dresses are trash anyway I'll just take my business elsewhere. Expect a bad review on Yelp.“
“Very well have a good day Miss Lyons and congratulations," said the attendant "I apologize we couldn't help you today.”
Victoria just rolled her eyes grabbed her belongings and walked to the door the attendant didn't stop her the door chime Softly As she stepped outside, her phone buzzed.
A promotional graphic for Blaze of Glory with her and Alexandra Calaway on it. She laughed and looked at it with narrow eyes that people had the boutique might have made her leave, but Calaway won't have that luxury at Blaze of Glory. After today she had some more anger and frustration to let out, and unfortunately for Alexandra Calloway she was the next person in Victoria's way.
__________
The camera fades in slowly, the screen remaining black as soft piano music plays almost theatrical in its melancholy. As the image comes through, we see Darian Price sitting and playing a piano in what appears to be a chapel or a room dressed to resemble one.
The camera pans around the room to catch a casket with a picture of Alexandra Calaway framed on top of it, not a SCW promotional headshot, it looks like something stolen from her Instagram or X page where she's got her arm around LJ Kasey with a smile.
At the podium stands Victoria Lyons, dressed entirely in black with the Bombshell Internet Championship resting over her shoulder like a sash of royalty. The piano fades as her eyes lower to the folded paper in her hands.
“My name…” she began softly “Is Victoria Lyons, and we are gathered here today to honor the life and impending death of Alexandra Calaway.”
She looks up letting her eyes meet the camera.
“I know it seems premature.” she continued “Alexandra is technically still breathing and competing, but that's only under the illusion that she walks out of Blaze of Glory as a champion, instead of it being the end for her.”
She tilts her head slightly.
“But some endings… deserve preparation.” she said. “I've known Alexandra Calaway for a while now. We've shared rings, we've shared spotlights and we've shared history. And to her credit, she's tried.”
A faint smile on her face.
“She won her crown the year after mine.” Victoria said “And it was a beautiful moment, but let's be honest she didn't take it from my hands or stand over my body. The truth that is undeniable is that whenever she and I share a ring, I win more than she does.”
There's no arrogance in her tone, just fact.
“Recently I suffered a loss.” Victoria said "Alicia Lukas caught me on a night when I was imperfect. But I assure that that will not happen again, because my championship is on the line now and when something truly matters I do not fold.”
She pauses with a slight glance at the photo of Calaway on the casket.
“Alexandra Calaway walks into Blaze of Glory with a chance to validate herself.“ said Victoria “To stand across from me and prove that her crown wasn't just a footnote in mine. To prove that she cannot only beat me but take something from me and that she can do it without a distraction by somebody like that little whelp Harper Mason.”
She gently rests a hand on the casket lid.
“Unfortunately this isn't her validation.” she said “This is her elimination."
She lifts up the paper again.
“I wrote this eulogy because I want to be respectful, she deserves that much.” Victoria continued “She doesn't rattle easily and she's very resilient and disciplined. That's what really makes this tragic.”
She wipes an alligator tear from her eye.
“Alexandra believes that patience wins wars and that if she stands firm long enough, eventually I will make a mistake.” Victoria continued “But I don't make the same mistakes twice so Alexandra, if you're watching this I want you to understand that this isn't personal, this is historical.”
A small pause.
“And history remembers dominance.” Victoria continued “History does not remember second place. You are not walking into Blaze of Glory to dethrone me, you're walking into place of Glory to be archived.”
Exhale.
“Archived as someone who almost got Victoria Lyons.” she said “But almost doesn't survive. I respect the attempt and the discipline but respect alone will not win matches, respect only serves as a distraction and can delay you in the moment.”
A short pause.
“At Blaze of Glory…” she continued “Alexandra Calaway will step into the ring thinking composure is her armor and it's her time to ascend. But she will fall, and she will fall greatly and be no more than just a memory, a footnote in the record of my reign. Just as she is in the memory of my Bombshell Roulette Championship reign.”
Her mouth curves into a subtle smirk.
“At Blaze of Glory....” Victoria continued “Alexandra Calaway will be remembered as second place. The one who couldn't rise fast enough and couldn't survive the inevitable. It's going to be a sad day at Blaze of Glory. We're all going to miss Alexandra Calloway but I'm afraid there's only room for one of us and our history favors me. Who I feel truly bad for are those closest to her.”
She wipes another alligator tear from her eye.
“Poor LJ Kasey is going to lose his fiancee.” Victoria said "No longer will he be part of the third best couple in the company behind myself and Darian, and Kasey and Carter. My dear cousin Alexander is going to lose a close friend, someone he considers more of a sibling than any other of his leech siblings.”
A short pause.
“We will remember Alexandra Calaway.” Victoria said “We'll remember her tenacity, and how she always brought the best out of her opponent. I assure you her memory will live on but at blaze of glory I will be walking out with this internet championship and remind everyone why Victoria Lyons is the champion and, Alexandra Calaway will always be the almost.”
She looks to the casket again as the camera zooms in closer on the picture of Calaway, the soft lyrics of Ave Maria play as the scene comes to an end.
#Wir schlafen sicher bis zum morgen
Ob menschen noch so grausam sind
Oh jungfrau, sieh der jungfrau sorgen
Oh mutter erhöre ein bittend kind
Ave Maria.#
