01-07-2021, 11:05 AM
01-09-2021, 12:22 PM
01-12-2021, 07:07 PM
Here's my effort, a continuation of a story that is more than a little bit behind but now getting there and now forming a clear direction for young Cruze
Enjoy guys, good luck and all that stuff
Owen #83
Enjoy guys, good luck and all that stuff
Owen #83
01-12-2021, 11:09 PM
01-13-2021, 12:28 AM
OOC: I'll be honest for a moment. As much as I love how this ultimately turned out, this isn't exactly what I wanted to do for this match. I had another CD section planned to add to this that I ultimately had to put on the shelf because I realized there was no way I was going to be able to get it done in time without a serious sacrifice in quality. It'd be a different story if I'd given myself more time to work on this, but I've been buried beneath a huge wave of anxiety over the past two days that I have no idea what's causing it or why I can't seem to snap out of it, and the fact that I was able to fight it off to be able to write what I am able to post is honestly surprising in and of itself. Best of luck guys!
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Focus.
Time and time again, Aaron had found himself being questioned on whether or not he could focus on the task at hand, and many could easily assume the answer was no.
It was hard to argue, unfortunately. The vast majority of the creative soul’s SCW career seemed to be plagued by some situation demanding his attention on top of any straightforward effort to fight his way to the top of the proverbial mountain, which made achieving that desired feat next to impossible at times. It never stopped him from being able to get in the ring and put on the kind of performance that left jaws on the floor and got people talking about what he was capable of, even in defeat. Of course, the fact that the losses outweighed both the wins and those moments overshadowed all of it.
Even in a new year, this trend continued, and it was beginning to drive him mad.
It was obvious to try and pinpoint the issue within SCW, considering the ongoing war between the Perfect Pack and those who either wanted to destroy SCW or game the system to stroke their own egos was hardly a secret.
Beyond the ring, however, was another matter entirely, and that was the fight Aaron could slowly feel himself losing with each passing day.
With the holiday buzz starting to die down as life returned to normal under the banner of 2021, Aaron would have figured this would open the door for him to finally be able to have a much-needed conversation with Dr. Marsh-Asher about the recent events and what he thought was going on. To say that the stress of knowing that his youngest brother and future sister-in-law were both hospitalized by what seemed to be the same drug going by two different names and having been distributed two entirely opposing ways was starting to get to him was an understatement, especially since he had to remind himself that he wasn’t the only one being affected in this mess.
It was for that reason that he needed to make the difficult decision to return home to Seattle without Liane by his side.
He didn’t want to do it, and he missed his fiancée terribly in more ways than one, but they had different ways of tackling the problem at hand and respected that both methods would be necessary if they were going to keep everything together long enough to get some answers. Considering that Liane was still in a slow recovery from their last encounter with the still in hiding(?) Nancy Black and her schedule as a comedian even without that little asterisk was fairly light at the moment, he knew that her place was beside her family to care for Liza and keep him updated on anything that he needed to know should any new developments arise. He could have asked for time off to do the same, but anyone who knows Aaron understands that he works through issues like this best when he has something to distract him, and wrestling provided one hell of a distraction.
Even if he didn’t have his beloved in the capacity he would have preferred, it still would have been easier to escape these issues and focus on what awaited him in the ring if he had some sort of answer.
Despite the holidays coming to an end, Aaron’s efforts to get a hold of Dr. Marsh-Asher continued to hit a brick wall, and to say he was worried was trying to be generous about it. He wanted nothing more than to fill the former SCW star in on what had happened and discuss his thoughts on how, in some fashion, this had to be Nancy’s latest ploy, even if none of what had happened seemed to add up in a way that directed it all back to her or came off as anything more than one hell of a coincidence. He knew that Nancy had found a way before to get James out of the picture courtesy of a ton of underhanded manipulation of legalities and red tape, and he was arguably the biggest reason why all of her plans had failed up to this point.
There was a growing sense of dread and worry that was slowly consuming the creative soul, and he could feel his ability to at least focus on what was immediately in front of him slipping more and more by the day.
Needless to say, if Aaron was going to refocus in any capacity, whether it was taking whatever advice he believed Dr. Marsh-Asher could give or not, there was only one place he knew he could go to accomplish that right now.
Granted, the fact that he didn’t end up EXACTLY where he was aiming to go raised a few concerns he hadn’t had in quite some time.
Once he’d taken a few moments to assess the situation after his latest attempt to get a hold of the therapist had fallen through, he’d had several options on the table. He could’ve simply tried to lose himself in writing or drawing something new, but he was actually starting to hit a rare creative burnout from taking that approach too often since Alec had been hospitalized, and even the creative soul needed to take a break and change things up every once in a while. He’d considered calling Liane this very second to discuss this a little further with her, but as badly as he wanted to hear her voice right now he knew that he needed to leave approaching this to their therapist first, as the more information James could have on how a similar fate had befallen Liza meant the better odds he had of being able to work with police to get to the bottom of whatever the hell was going on.
The fact that there was a part of him buried somewhere deep down that felt hurt by the idea that voicing his concerns to Liane would only somehow worsen where his head was at right now wasn’t making him feel any better.
He had ultimately settled for trying to do a bit of meditation to consciously enter the world that resided within his mind as a means of trying to sort it all out and reflect on what his next course of action should be. He believed the best course of action he could possibly take at this moment was trying to figure out a way to shift most of his focus toward SCW to take his mind off the concerns that continued to try and take him in every direction at once aside from the one he truly wanted to go, though somehow that felt so much easier said than done than this task normally was. Considering Aaron had become a master of escapism so long as he had something capable of being a big enough distraction to devote most of his attention to, it was concerning that he couldn’t just suddenly slam his train of thought onto the one set of tracks that led straight into the huge Tag League match right in front of him and Owen.
He had intended to arrive right in his Sanctuary, seeling the comfort of the designated safe zone in the confines of his own imagination where he, and he alone, could exist, so the fact that he flickered into existence somewhere in the isolated fields that led to it instead sent a wave of concern straight through his system. The last time this had happened was before he’d managed to turn the Twin Stars to his side in the war that had broken out some time ago when they and Nemesis had been fighting each other for control as much as they had been attempting to rip it away from him. The memory made him wince considering it felt like an eternity ago and yet he knew far less time had truly passed since then.
This had ‘bad omen’ written all over it, and the sooner he could figure out what was going on here and sort it out, the sooner he could truly rearrange everything into something that worked so he could feel like he was moving forward and making progress both inside and out again.
As Aaron trekked across the field in the direction he knew the Sanctuary was waiting, he took a careful look at his surroundings, trying to see if he could pick up on any anomalies that would give him a reason to be concerned about this turn of events. He wanted to cling to the hope that maybe he was off-target because of how stressed he’d been lately with whatever was going on with this mysterious new drug and the feeling that it wasn’t a coincidence that it had found its way to both halves of his inevitable future family picture. While it wouldn’t be the first time he’d ended up with more of a journey that he’d wanted towards a specific destination in his mindscape, experience dictated that the only time he ever couldn’t pull this off with the Sanctuary was due to some sort of interference.
It wouldn’t surprise him if that were the case now, though he could hardly see a point in Nemesis even making the attempt considering that he was, for the most part, holding himself together pretty well in the face of everything that had happened and the embodiment of all his stress and negativity was still nowhere close to the full power he hadn’t possessed since around this time last year.
As he walked, Aaron found no sign of anything that indicated the monster in question had tried to tamper with anything, which was always easier to spot in this part of his imaginary world because of how important the Sanctuary was to him. Green grass dotted with the occasional flower of random colors, a peaceful landscape that stretched on for miles against the setting sun of the evening sky that matched the current time in the real world… so far, all that could be seen was the kind of setting he’d easily be tempted to paint because no one with even the smallest shred of creativity could resist being inspired by such a beautiful setting.
The only thing that seemed out of place, as far as he could see, was what looked like an ominously dark sky way off in the distance east of where he was heading.
That said, something about the mere sight of that dark sky was setting every last nerve ablaze with a feeling he couldn’t quite pin down, one that he knew for sure wasn’t good.
Inexplicably, he started feeling a strong pull to go and investigate this looming darkness, knowing full well that if left alone it could easily become the catalyst to a far greater problem. And yet, he decided to fight against this temptation, trying to ground himself in the knowledge that if he could reach the Sanctuary and find the inner peace he came here to work towards, there was very little chance that sky and whatever it represented would still be there afterward. He actually couldn’t resist chuckling a bit, finding himself coming back to a memory of a time far before he was an entrenched in wrestling as he was now when an attempted trip to the Sanctuary had been derailed by stormy skies, and it wasn’t hard to recall who the culprit had been.
“You must really be getting desperate if you’re actually trying to play the same old tricks twice in this lifetime, Nemesis.”
“I’d actually find that comment amusing IF this were my doing.”
Aaron’s eyes widened and he tore his gaze away from the distant darkness, whipping around in surprise to find the abomination in question. It was a bold move for sure on the part of this imaginary nightmare, but one it was willing to take when it felt safe enough to do so regardless of how much strength they actually possessed at the moment.
“I hate to burst your imaginary little bubble Aaron, but that,” they paused to point at the gloomy clouds hanging in the sky some ways away, “is not my handiwork. I actually kind of wish it was.”
Aaron had to restrain himself from immediately responding with skepticism to this claim, knowing full well by now that if Nemesis was telling the truth in some capacity, then at best they were trying to distort it in a way that would ultimately benefit them. But something about the way they spoke seemed to stand out to the creative soul, even if the demon had done its best to try and hide it. It almost sounded… concerned? Afraid?
These thoughts had to be shaken off because those were emotions that Nemesis was never known to possess. There was a reason it was the living imaginary embodiment of everything that stressed Aaron out and tried to bring him down mentally and emotionally, after all.
“What are you doing here?”
“Trying to find you. I felt your presence on this plane of existence and was hoping to reach you before you locked yourself away inside your precious little Sanctuary.”
“You mean the Sanctuary you clearly don’t want me in right now, for whatever reason?”
“Again, not my doing. Though I’m flattered that you’re convinced otherwise.”
Aaron huffed and rolled his eyes before he started to march away from Nemesis towards his destination once more, his body tensing in preparation to fight because he had a strong feeling this mutated reflection of himself wasn’t going to just let him walk away that easily. Sure enough, Nemesis followed after him, and when they reached out to try and grab his wrist he quickly pulled himself free and whipped around with a roundhouse kick that just barely missed as Nemesis just managed to jump back enough to avoid contact. There was no surprise on the being’s face at this response, though no sign of any anger or annoyance either, oddly enough. Still, Aaron kept his guard up, considering this particular ‘creation’ of his was at the very top of his list of untrustworthy denizens inside his head for a reason.
“Look, it’s cute that you think I’m trying to mess with you in some way, it really is. If this were a situation I actually controlled in any fashion, I’d be more than happy to exchange some witty dialogue for the next half hour or so until we either come to blows or you decide you’ve had enough of this discussion and snapped yourself awake. But while I do need to talk with you, it’s on even terms this time, I promise.”
“Coming from someone whose only capable of keeping one promise and that’s to make me as miserable as possible for your own benefit, that’s rich. But, humor me… if that dark cloud off in the distance isn’t your doing, then whose is it?”
“Paranoia.”
Aaron felt his guard suddenly drop as something seemed to surge through him that rattled him far more than he could ever recall being within the confines of his own creative world before. His eyes widened and an eyebrow shot up in an odd mixture of confusion and concern, especially since this involuntary reaction had given his enemy a clear opening that they weren’t taking. Maybe it was how odd this whole situation was suddenly feeling, but if Nemesis wasn’t actively trying to pick a fight for whatever reason, then there had to be something more going on.
Then again, Nemesis had proven more than willing to play the long con in the past, and Aaron refused to give him any more of an opening than he was allowing right now.
“What do you mean, paranoia?”
“Surely you’ve stared into that looming abyss of darkness and despair just hanging there over nothing and felt something. Something that you can’t quite place, but something that you know full well is going to become a much bigger problem if you just leave it alone.”
“Which is the whole reason I’m trying to just go to the Sanctuary and-”
“And, what? You think having a few moments of quiet time to yourself is just going to make that go away? If it were that easy, it wouldn’t still be sitting there with all the time you’ve spent painting this world with brand new denizens you’ve spent far too much time concocting personalities and backstories for as a distraction more than anything else.”
A low growl escaped Aaron’s throat as he turned away from Nemesis and resumed his trip towards the Sanctuary, wanting to get to his safe haven and clear his head before this creature did any more damage. Unsurprisingly, Nemesis tailed him, but they kept a safe distance this time so as not to incite any further retaliation. It was irritating, but he knew that he and he alone was allowed to cross the threshold into his final destination and once he did, that would be the end of this.
“I find it quite amusing that you’re just trying to walk away from this problem, Aaron. I’ve never known you to consider that an option in all the time I’ve been a living, conscious entity residing here in your mind.”
“What you consider ‘walking away’ is actually a case of me doing exactly what I came here to do in order to put myself back together after the past few weeks so you and whatever that thing is, assuming you’re telling the truth for once, can go back to the drawing board and I can focus on working with Owen to do what we need to do in the ring.”
“And you don’t find it odd that you’re struggling so much to focus on being locked into a wrestling mindset for a change? Not when it’s been one of the few lone constants about how you function?”
Nemesis made a good point, but it was one Aaron already knew. He wasn’t going to give the demon the satisfaction of acknowledging they were right, knowing full well it was an easy trap to get baited into. On the plus side, he could see the Sanctuary slowly growing closer, meaning that whatever this monster’s game was this time, their window of opportunity was about to be slammed shut in accomplishing whatever they came here to do.
Nemesis made a noise, presumably to try and say something else since they were no doubt just as aware of what would soon be upon them if they kept walking, but the noise was quickly drowned out by a loud rumbling that easily reminded one of thunder. They both stopped and turned in the direction of the hanging darkness, and Aaron’s concern spiked when he saw what looked like a soundwave given physical form suddenly rippling across the landscape. He turned to start making a break towards the Sanctuary, but he barely got moving before the wave enveloped both him and Nemesis, far faster than he’d perceived. As it moved through them, they both dropped to their knees and clutched at their heads, every last nerve ablaze with pure fear that something hidden away in that darkness was the cause of all of it, but for as much as they both felt they knew exactly what it was, there was just enough uncertainty to leave behind traces of doubt that they truly knew anything at all. Aaron knew for sure that his ears were ringing with a mixture of thunder, static and what reminded him of the roar of a terrifying beast that was not meant to be heard by human ears, which only seemed to rock him even more than he’d anticipated.
It had only lasted a few seconds, and yet the feeling lingered for more than enough time to make the creative soul rethink the situation at hand.
As he chanced to turn his gaze to Nemesis, he noticed that the entity was recovering from this a little quicker than he was, but that by no means meant they weren’t as shellshocked by whatever had just happened. Past experience dictated that Nemesis was certainly willing to take risks if need be if it meant trying to capitalize on whatever opening they had to rip control away from their host, but even then they sought to minimize the amount of damage they would take if the gambit didn’t pay off, especially if they weren’t operating at full strength. Truth be told, Nemesis was far more physically fragile than one might think if they could actually see into Aaron’s mind and understand everything that existed within, strengthened only be whatever weakened Aaron from a mental standpoint to use as literal fuel.
There was very little reason for them to willingly take a hit like that, even if it didn’t seem to rock them as much as it did him, in the state they were in now, which cemented the revelation that this nightmare that was notorious for lying and using whatever underhanded tactic they could latch onto in order to gain power and control was, for perhaps the first time ever, being completely honest with its creator.
“You alright?”
If that didn’t cement how bizarre this whole situation had become and how much it wasn’t sitting well in Aaron’s gut, then he truly didn’t know anything anymore. He managed to stagger back to his feet, still trying to get his bearings, but he and Nemesis had kept their eyes locked as the creative soul tried to make sense of the concern that the nightmare of negativity was never known to show, assuming it had even been possible up until now.
“I’ll be fine, though I might be a little more inclined to hear you out now after… whatever the hell just happened.”
“I’m assuming it’s safe to say you’ve never tried to put an appearance to the concept of paranoia like you did with me and the concept of every negative emotion that runs through your brain?”
Aaron slowly shook his head. The thought had never crossed his mind, though he’d never really needed to ponder the concept of paranoia much before now. Granted, he’d had his moments of feeling like he was drowning in the concept. It was hard not to given how much he seemed to be some sort of supernatural magnet for the worst possible scenarios a human being could reasonably go through, but the feeling had never been as intense as it was now and he’d had no reason to try and paint it in such a light before.
“The only thing I know for sure is that, whatever that dark cloud is, it’s your imagination trying to put a physical appearance to the feeling. I also know that a cloud sitting in the sky isn’t the end of it, because something about that thing since it’s parked itself there has given off the vibe that it’s growing, evolving… into what, I’m not even sure you’re intentionally trying to imagine at this point.”
“OK… that creates a new problem I need to figure out, especially if that thing turns out anything like you did.”
“You can be witty all you want Aaron, but trust me when I say that whatever this ‘paranoia’ is trying to become… it’s going to be far worse than I’ve ever been. I want to be mad that it’s showing up and trying to steal my proverbial place here, but I think you know, deep down, the same thing I do: I’ll be just as much of a casualty to that thing’s power as anyone else existing here and, at the end of the day, you especially.”
Aaron just stared at Nemesis, trying to ponder exactly what they were getting at. He couldn’t deny that something deep in his subconscious was setting off every alarm he could think of after what he’d just felt, which was unlike anything he’d ever been rattled by in his own imagination. Whatever this Paranoia was trying to become, a dark horizon was merely a cocoon stage at best. Something about Nemesis’s words also seemed to trigger the realization of exactly why they had seemingly recovered quicker than he did: he was the host. This was all in his head, and that show of force from Paranoia wasn’t necessarily aimed at the two of them. It had been directed towards everything that gave this place form within his imagination; a direct attack on Aaron’s senses and mental capacity as a whole. He’d actually never been here the few times he’d felt such a thing in the past from either Nemesis or anything else that was trying to actively fight against him from within, which would explain why it seemed to hit him twice as hard as it did the abomination standing before him.
“Alright, I’ll bite. Since you seem to have a better idea of what’s going on here at the moment, I’m willing to hear you out, as much as we both know I trust you about as far as I can realistically throw you.”
“Believe me, I’m going to hate myself for the words that are about to leave my mouth, but this is going to be as painful for me to say as it will be for you to hear. I’m willing to offer a truce.”
At that, Nemesis slowly extends their hand, which only seems to make Aaron even more confused and apprehensive.
“I can already tell you that it’s going to take the combined efforts of you and virtually every being you’ve got here to ultimately get rid of that thing, and like it or not, that includes me. Your overall mental stability is in jeopardy, and even if that sounds tempting, I’m in no position to be able to try and cut Paranoia off in taking advantage of it without being ripped to pieces myself. So, as much as it’s literally going to hurt me to assist you in putting you in a better place internally, I’m willing to set aside our differences-”
“No deal.”
Nemesis looked stunned at being cut off by that response, but Aaron’s eyes were narrowed into a glare that made it clear he was standing firm on this decision.
“I don’t think you understand-”
“No, YOU don’t see this picture the same way I do, and I’m not going to let myself take the bait. You’ve given me no reason to ever trust you… back when things were far less stable around here, when Dreambender and Gleeful had burned their bridges with me, I was still willing to try and make amends because I knew exactly what drove them to do it and know full well that despite their overwhelming power, they’re still just kids reacting in a way that kids in their position would after the way they were seemingly slighted. But you? From the very second you were created, your very existence as what you are made it clear that you were always going to do whatever it took to break me down and assume control to finish driving me off the proverbial cliff. Even if you’re right, even if there’s actually some truth to your words for once, I would rather take the risk of finding a solution to this problem that doesn’t involve selling my soul in exchange for your cooperation, because I know you too well by now… the very second I let my guard down when this is all over, you’ll strike. And I’m not going to lose everything I’ve tried to gain despite your attempts to destroy me even if my life depended on it.”
Aaron turned and began to start heading to the Sanctuary entrance once more, but he didn’t get far before Nemesis called out to him again.
“You’re really going to turn down my help? I’ll admit, I’ve never given you a reason to trust me, but even you have always been a little smarter about practicing self-preservation inside your head as opposed to outside of it. After all, you believe you know your mind better than anyone else could just because it’s yours.”
“I think you might’ve actually forgotten who you’re talking to. If you know me half as well as you like to think you do, then you’d realize there’s always more than one solution to every problem if you’re willing to think outside the box a little more than usual. I KNOW there’s another way to stop whatever that thing is, regardless of whether this is all a game of yours or not, and I’ll find it… without your help.”
Aaron gives Nemesis no further room to argue as he storms off, quickly covering the remaining space that allows him inside the Sanctuary and away from having to deal with the toxic terror any further. Nemesis just watches him go, slowly retracting their hand before they let a bitter laugh escape their lips before vanishing from the scene with one last thought that Aaron will never hear.
“You’re a fool Aaron, and the pride you take in your creative efforts will be your undoing somehow, someway. Mark my words.”
I could discuss the fact that the win Owen and I picked up last week for the Tag League not only kept our hopes alive at first, but also marks the first time I’ve actually started off a new year in my SCW career in the win column.
I could bring up the fact that this week’s Breakdown feels like I’m stepping back onto my home turf in a sense, as Tacoma’s only about an hour drive away from Seattle.
There’s also the obvious that because a certain someone decided that he could rectify being a sore loser by trying to screw over others, barring some sort of miracle I’m not sure Owen and I would honestly feel comfortable with because of what we’d know it would bring, we are effectively eliminated from the Tag League at this point, even in the face of the fact that we have collectively remained unbeaten in the proper sense.
I could talk about any and all of those topics… but I won’t.
The fact of the matter is, like it or not, Owen and I still have two matches left to go in this thing, and at this point, none of it honestly matters. Our match this week should have been our biggest test to date, the greatest challenge standing between us and potentially being able to take this thing by knocking off A/C Unit, who have been virtually unstoppable in their entire run and are aiming to close it out with a win that will force a semi-final with Bree and Sienna. You can’t get stakes any higher than the winner effectively having control of the block aside from that one outstanding team still in the mix that we’d both prefer to lose in this scenario. Instead, Owen and I can only hope to play spoiler now, and because of who would benefit from it, it’s a bittersweet feeling that they’re going to happily gloat about until they eventually run out of breath.
In that sense, logic would dictate that the smart call here would be for the two of us to just throw in the towel. We hand this match over to A/C Unit to force a scenario where, assuming this whole thing wraps up at the pay-per-view in about a week and a half, Bree is going to have to try and steal Sienna’s whole ‘IronAngel’ thing by potentially wrestling up to three separate matches in one night, something that I don’t believe she’s realized is a possibility out of this whole endeavor considering how focused she’s been on the World Title situation.
And yet… as much as we don’t want to just stroke Bree and Sienna’s already overinflated egos, Owen and I aren’t just going to let the two of you have this without a fight.
And if Asher wants to try and question that, he need only to look back at his own words from not that long ago to understand why I have absolutely no reason to let him and Cid have this that easily.
When you addressed me going into the battle royal back at Last Laugh Asher, you made it clear that you were questioning whether or not I still had the passion and the drive to be the kind of wrestler that so many believe I can be. You reminded me of what I have accomplished and the fights I’ve had where I showed signs of finally reaching that next level, just as you both reminded me of how much I seemed to slip and seemingly criticized me for being more willing to stand beside my friends and family in their fight than caring about what I wanted to accomplish for myself. You said all of this while confidently declaring that you would win that battle royal and go on to face Glory for the gold once the dust had settled.
You accomplished that, and in the process, you made this match far more personal than I think you truly comprehend.
I’ll give you this: maybe you’re right about how much I’m willing to sacrifice myself for the people that mean something to me because that’s just the kind of person that I am. Maybe I haven’t figured out how to be able to help them put an end to all the bullshit that has threatened all of us as a whole while trying to sort out my own individual endeavors like you seem to have done in the face of trying to help Cid deal with a false god. Maybe I haven’t been doing this for long enough to know how to reach that crucial balance even though virtually my entire SCW career has seen any attempt to make something of myself be weighed down by someone else who wants to pick a fight with me for whatever reason they’ve convinced themselves is worth it in the end.
Despite all of that, however, I know that I can see the bigger picture of this match.
The fact of the matter is, this situation isn’t just about me. It’s about Owen as well, and what we’ve been able to accomplish together in the face of the adversity we’ve both had to endure through every last little game of the likes of Sienna and Gio ever since this tournament started. It’s easy to look at this match and say that we should simply not bother because we can’t win and it gives us a way to take an indirect shot at our enemies. But at the end of the day… if we do that, then they win. Regardless of how much we could set them back, we’d be stooping to their level of pettiness at the cost of our own careers and personal beliefs, and that gives them far more ammo to work with than a win that gives them the block outright.
For one, just because they would win now doesn’t mean they’re in the clear yet, because a win like this on top of everything else the two of us have been proving together prior to the start of this whole thing make sit hard to ignore us when the Tag League is all set and done and the plan for the future needs to be addressed.
Also, I seriously doubt you would go through the trouble of making such a speech only to just accept a free win with no strings attached, would you Asher?
This match might not be about trying to win the Tag League anymore, but a win for Owen and I sets the stage for the aftermath, where Bree and Sienna could face the very real possibility that even if they do win the whole thing and get to parade around as Tag Champions, we’ll be the first ones knocking on the door to make them prove they can actually beat us without Sienna forcing a situation that hands them a win they never truly earned and will never admit to. Hell, the same could honestly be said of whoever is holding those belts when all is set and done, because anyone from A/C Unit to the top teams from the other block or even Lucas and Chris could be slotted into that same position and need to accept that this hunt doesn’t stop just because the tournament’s over.
If you want to talk about right here and now, however, then this match means addressing the proverbial elephant in the room that you no doubt still want to hold over my head, Asher. You wanted to question me, knowing full well that I’m man enough to admit to all my flaws and shortcomings. You want to know where I am, and the answer, right now, is standing right in front of you, ready to do whatever it takes to make you walk away from this match, regardless of the outcome, with some respect for me and the understanding that even if I haven’t given myself the easiest road to walk and will always take the detour if it helps those that are close to me, I am done letting anyone just assume that I’m complacent with where I’m at, with where the Perfect Pack is at.
You’re free to not believe me if you wish, but you’ll know the second we get to share that ring come Breakdown that I am giving you my best and well beyond, because Owen deserves no less from his brother in arms and you deserve no less from someone hellbent on making a believer out of you as you’ve clearly pointed out I’ve done to so many others once upon a time.
The funny thing is… compared to you Asher, Cid seems to get me just a little bit more.
I’ve heard what you had to say Cid, and I’ll admit that your words were both along the lines of what I’m used to hearing and yet somehow a breath of fresh air all the same. You stood there putting a voice to the idea of looking at me the same way everyone else does, but from a slightly different angle to see the things that no one else wants to see. Yeah, maybe I’m a little weird to most people. I’ve grown used to that assessment over the years because I like to operate just a little bit differently than most others. But I do that because of one reason and one reason alone… this is exactly who I am, and you are one of the rare instances where I’ve crossed paths with someone who actually understands and respects that.
I do the things I do to send a message of my own to the world around me… a message that Owen and Kelcey and Peyton and even Alistaire have accepted and embraced, and that’s to never be afraid of who you truly are. In a world that’s growing more stagnant by the day because far too many people are afraid to let go of the past and the way things used to be, I fight to show them that there’s nothing wrong with embracing a different point of view or taking a different approach to a problem. If I were the same as anybody else, I would have accepted this perceived belief long ago that maybe SCW is beyond my abilities and I’m better off taking a hike. I’ve stayed because the more even good people like Asher begin to question me and whether or not I can do this, the more I begin to realize that I haven’t tried every single solution to resolve the issue at hand and to give up now would mean I’m turning my back on everything that I preach to the masses and everyone who accepts and believes in me because of that.
As you heard me say all those months ago… hopes and dreams will never die.
The fact that you were willing to step back into the fray after all these years, knowing full well the risks you were taking in the process, is proof that you, just like me, aren’t willing to just live in the past and accept things as they are now. Maybe you could have stayed out of the ring and never taken the chance, to begin with, but then you’d forever be pondering the age-old question of ‘what if.’ What if you had never returned to the ring in the first place to know for sure what would happen, what if you had clung to the past and been content instead of trying something new? You might think that people like Chad Evans have a point in that being the safer option, but regardless of how you view the man, I know for a fact that people like him only say those things to guys like you because, deep down, they’re afraid.
Chad isn’t doing what he’s doing because it’s ‘good for you’ no matter what he claims. He’s doing this because he’s afraid to accept that you were willing to try and take another stab at this without him, and his response is to desperately try to remind you of what you once were because everything he does, no matter how sickening it may be, is to prove that people can’t change… a reminder he needs to preach to himself every single day because he’s just as afraid to admit that SCW can and will move on without him, just as you can.
Wednesday night isn’t going to be about him though, as much as his fragile ego wishes to believe otherwise, and it’s not about The Wonderland’s latest efforts to try and burn SCW to the ground or Bree and Sienna growing complacent with the fact that they believe they hold all the cards when this year’s only just getting started. For you Cid, this is about getting to test yourself against two men who have been called time and again the future of SCW, to prove to yourself why Asher was willing to stand by your side this entire time and remind the world of why you are a legendary name within this company. That said, you know as well as I do that the only way you can truly get that challenge is if we come at the two of you determined to win despite what it would mean for your run, because whatever you prove against us will also send a message to those who question why you’re still here, the answer loud and clear no matter how unwilling they are to accept it.
The Tag League may be over for Owen and me despite what still remains on our schedule, but that doesn’t mean that life in SCW as a whole has to come to a screeching halt. What we do in the ring against the two of you now holds meaning for what awaits us both down the road, both as a message to those who continue to try and start a war with us that they believe they can win and a warning to every champion, regardless of which title we’re talking about, that we are still very much in the fight to try and earn our place in the history books.
Breakdown will present to the world four men who are willing to put it all on the line, regardless of the stakes, just because that’s the way it should be done.
And should the Perfect Pack stand tall at the end of the night, no one will be able to deny the statement we’ll make, no matter how delusional they’ve ultimately become.
-------------------------------------------
Focus.
Time and time again, Aaron had found himself being questioned on whether or not he could focus on the task at hand, and many could easily assume the answer was no.
It was hard to argue, unfortunately. The vast majority of the creative soul’s SCW career seemed to be plagued by some situation demanding his attention on top of any straightforward effort to fight his way to the top of the proverbial mountain, which made achieving that desired feat next to impossible at times. It never stopped him from being able to get in the ring and put on the kind of performance that left jaws on the floor and got people talking about what he was capable of, even in defeat. Of course, the fact that the losses outweighed both the wins and those moments overshadowed all of it.
Even in a new year, this trend continued, and it was beginning to drive him mad.
It was obvious to try and pinpoint the issue within SCW, considering the ongoing war between the Perfect Pack and those who either wanted to destroy SCW or game the system to stroke their own egos was hardly a secret.
Beyond the ring, however, was another matter entirely, and that was the fight Aaron could slowly feel himself losing with each passing day.
With the holiday buzz starting to die down as life returned to normal under the banner of 2021, Aaron would have figured this would open the door for him to finally be able to have a much-needed conversation with Dr. Marsh-Asher about the recent events and what he thought was going on. To say that the stress of knowing that his youngest brother and future sister-in-law were both hospitalized by what seemed to be the same drug going by two different names and having been distributed two entirely opposing ways was starting to get to him was an understatement, especially since he had to remind himself that he wasn’t the only one being affected in this mess.
It was for that reason that he needed to make the difficult decision to return home to Seattle without Liane by his side.
He didn’t want to do it, and he missed his fiancée terribly in more ways than one, but they had different ways of tackling the problem at hand and respected that both methods would be necessary if they were going to keep everything together long enough to get some answers. Considering that Liane was still in a slow recovery from their last encounter with the still in hiding(?) Nancy Black and her schedule as a comedian even without that little asterisk was fairly light at the moment, he knew that her place was beside her family to care for Liza and keep him updated on anything that he needed to know should any new developments arise. He could have asked for time off to do the same, but anyone who knows Aaron understands that he works through issues like this best when he has something to distract him, and wrestling provided one hell of a distraction.
Even if he didn’t have his beloved in the capacity he would have preferred, it still would have been easier to escape these issues and focus on what awaited him in the ring if he had some sort of answer.
Despite the holidays coming to an end, Aaron’s efforts to get a hold of Dr. Marsh-Asher continued to hit a brick wall, and to say he was worried was trying to be generous about it. He wanted nothing more than to fill the former SCW star in on what had happened and discuss his thoughts on how, in some fashion, this had to be Nancy’s latest ploy, even if none of what had happened seemed to add up in a way that directed it all back to her or came off as anything more than one hell of a coincidence. He knew that Nancy had found a way before to get James out of the picture courtesy of a ton of underhanded manipulation of legalities and red tape, and he was arguably the biggest reason why all of her plans had failed up to this point.
There was a growing sense of dread and worry that was slowly consuming the creative soul, and he could feel his ability to at least focus on what was immediately in front of him slipping more and more by the day.
Needless to say, if Aaron was going to refocus in any capacity, whether it was taking whatever advice he believed Dr. Marsh-Asher could give or not, there was only one place he knew he could go to accomplish that right now.
Granted, the fact that he didn’t end up EXACTLY where he was aiming to go raised a few concerns he hadn’t had in quite some time.
Once he’d taken a few moments to assess the situation after his latest attempt to get a hold of the therapist had fallen through, he’d had several options on the table. He could’ve simply tried to lose himself in writing or drawing something new, but he was actually starting to hit a rare creative burnout from taking that approach too often since Alec had been hospitalized, and even the creative soul needed to take a break and change things up every once in a while. He’d considered calling Liane this very second to discuss this a little further with her, but as badly as he wanted to hear her voice right now he knew that he needed to leave approaching this to their therapist first, as the more information James could have on how a similar fate had befallen Liza meant the better odds he had of being able to work with police to get to the bottom of whatever the hell was going on.
The fact that there was a part of him buried somewhere deep down that felt hurt by the idea that voicing his concerns to Liane would only somehow worsen where his head was at right now wasn’t making him feel any better.
He had ultimately settled for trying to do a bit of meditation to consciously enter the world that resided within his mind as a means of trying to sort it all out and reflect on what his next course of action should be. He believed the best course of action he could possibly take at this moment was trying to figure out a way to shift most of his focus toward SCW to take his mind off the concerns that continued to try and take him in every direction at once aside from the one he truly wanted to go, though somehow that felt so much easier said than done than this task normally was. Considering Aaron had become a master of escapism so long as he had something capable of being a big enough distraction to devote most of his attention to, it was concerning that he couldn’t just suddenly slam his train of thought onto the one set of tracks that led straight into the huge Tag League match right in front of him and Owen.
He had intended to arrive right in his Sanctuary, seeling the comfort of the designated safe zone in the confines of his own imagination where he, and he alone, could exist, so the fact that he flickered into existence somewhere in the isolated fields that led to it instead sent a wave of concern straight through his system. The last time this had happened was before he’d managed to turn the Twin Stars to his side in the war that had broken out some time ago when they and Nemesis had been fighting each other for control as much as they had been attempting to rip it away from him. The memory made him wince considering it felt like an eternity ago and yet he knew far less time had truly passed since then.
This had ‘bad omen’ written all over it, and the sooner he could figure out what was going on here and sort it out, the sooner he could truly rearrange everything into something that worked so he could feel like he was moving forward and making progress both inside and out again.
As Aaron trekked across the field in the direction he knew the Sanctuary was waiting, he took a careful look at his surroundings, trying to see if he could pick up on any anomalies that would give him a reason to be concerned about this turn of events. He wanted to cling to the hope that maybe he was off-target because of how stressed he’d been lately with whatever was going on with this mysterious new drug and the feeling that it wasn’t a coincidence that it had found its way to both halves of his inevitable future family picture. While it wouldn’t be the first time he’d ended up with more of a journey that he’d wanted towards a specific destination in his mindscape, experience dictated that the only time he ever couldn’t pull this off with the Sanctuary was due to some sort of interference.
It wouldn’t surprise him if that were the case now, though he could hardly see a point in Nemesis even making the attempt considering that he was, for the most part, holding himself together pretty well in the face of everything that had happened and the embodiment of all his stress and negativity was still nowhere close to the full power he hadn’t possessed since around this time last year.
As he walked, Aaron found no sign of anything that indicated the monster in question had tried to tamper with anything, which was always easier to spot in this part of his imaginary world because of how important the Sanctuary was to him. Green grass dotted with the occasional flower of random colors, a peaceful landscape that stretched on for miles against the setting sun of the evening sky that matched the current time in the real world… so far, all that could be seen was the kind of setting he’d easily be tempted to paint because no one with even the smallest shred of creativity could resist being inspired by such a beautiful setting.
The only thing that seemed out of place, as far as he could see, was what looked like an ominously dark sky way off in the distance east of where he was heading.
That said, something about the mere sight of that dark sky was setting every last nerve ablaze with a feeling he couldn’t quite pin down, one that he knew for sure wasn’t good.
Inexplicably, he started feeling a strong pull to go and investigate this looming darkness, knowing full well that if left alone it could easily become the catalyst to a far greater problem. And yet, he decided to fight against this temptation, trying to ground himself in the knowledge that if he could reach the Sanctuary and find the inner peace he came here to work towards, there was very little chance that sky and whatever it represented would still be there afterward. He actually couldn’t resist chuckling a bit, finding himself coming back to a memory of a time far before he was an entrenched in wrestling as he was now when an attempted trip to the Sanctuary had been derailed by stormy skies, and it wasn’t hard to recall who the culprit had been.
“You must really be getting desperate if you’re actually trying to play the same old tricks twice in this lifetime, Nemesis.”
“I’d actually find that comment amusing IF this were my doing.”
Aaron’s eyes widened and he tore his gaze away from the distant darkness, whipping around in surprise to find the abomination in question. It was a bold move for sure on the part of this imaginary nightmare, but one it was willing to take when it felt safe enough to do so regardless of how much strength they actually possessed at the moment.
“I hate to burst your imaginary little bubble Aaron, but that,” they paused to point at the gloomy clouds hanging in the sky some ways away, “is not my handiwork. I actually kind of wish it was.”
Aaron had to restrain himself from immediately responding with skepticism to this claim, knowing full well by now that if Nemesis was telling the truth in some capacity, then at best they were trying to distort it in a way that would ultimately benefit them. But something about the way they spoke seemed to stand out to the creative soul, even if the demon had done its best to try and hide it. It almost sounded… concerned? Afraid?
These thoughts had to be shaken off because those were emotions that Nemesis was never known to possess. There was a reason it was the living imaginary embodiment of everything that stressed Aaron out and tried to bring him down mentally and emotionally, after all.
“What are you doing here?”
“Trying to find you. I felt your presence on this plane of existence and was hoping to reach you before you locked yourself away inside your precious little Sanctuary.”
“You mean the Sanctuary you clearly don’t want me in right now, for whatever reason?”
“Again, not my doing. Though I’m flattered that you’re convinced otherwise.”
Aaron huffed and rolled his eyes before he started to march away from Nemesis towards his destination once more, his body tensing in preparation to fight because he had a strong feeling this mutated reflection of himself wasn’t going to just let him walk away that easily. Sure enough, Nemesis followed after him, and when they reached out to try and grab his wrist he quickly pulled himself free and whipped around with a roundhouse kick that just barely missed as Nemesis just managed to jump back enough to avoid contact. There was no surprise on the being’s face at this response, though no sign of any anger or annoyance either, oddly enough. Still, Aaron kept his guard up, considering this particular ‘creation’ of his was at the very top of his list of untrustworthy denizens inside his head for a reason.
“Look, it’s cute that you think I’m trying to mess with you in some way, it really is. If this were a situation I actually controlled in any fashion, I’d be more than happy to exchange some witty dialogue for the next half hour or so until we either come to blows or you decide you’ve had enough of this discussion and snapped yourself awake. But while I do need to talk with you, it’s on even terms this time, I promise.”
“Coming from someone whose only capable of keeping one promise and that’s to make me as miserable as possible for your own benefit, that’s rich. But, humor me… if that dark cloud off in the distance isn’t your doing, then whose is it?”
“Paranoia.”
Aaron felt his guard suddenly drop as something seemed to surge through him that rattled him far more than he could ever recall being within the confines of his own creative world before. His eyes widened and an eyebrow shot up in an odd mixture of confusion and concern, especially since this involuntary reaction had given his enemy a clear opening that they weren’t taking. Maybe it was how odd this whole situation was suddenly feeling, but if Nemesis wasn’t actively trying to pick a fight for whatever reason, then there had to be something more going on.
Then again, Nemesis had proven more than willing to play the long con in the past, and Aaron refused to give him any more of an opening than he was allowing right now.
“What do you mean, paranoia?”
“Surely you’ve stared into that looming abyss of darkness and despair just hanging there over nothing and felt something. Something that you can’t quite place, but something that you know full well is going to become a much bigger problem if you just leave it alone.”
“Which is the whole reason I’m trying to just go to the Sanctuary and-”
“And, what? You think having a few moments of quiet time to yourself is just going to make that go away? If it were that easy, it wouldn’t still be sitting there with all the time you’ve spent painting this world with brand new denizens you’ve spent far too much time concocting personalities and backstories for as a distraction more than anything else.”
A low growl escaped Aaron’s throat as he turned away from Nemesis and resumed his trip towards the Sanctuary, wanting to get to his safe haven and clear his head before this creature did any more damage. Unsurprisingly, Nemesis tailed him, but they kept a safe distance this time so as not to incite any further retaliation. It was irritating, but he knew that he and he alone was allowed to cross the threshold into his final destination and once he did, that would be the end of this.
“I find it quite amusing that you’re just trying to walk away from this problem, Aaron. I’ve never known you to consider that an option in all the time I’ve been a living, conscious entity residing here in your mind.”
“What you consider ‘walking away’ is actually a case of me doing exactly what I came here to do in order to put myself back together after the past few weeks so you and whatever that thing is, assuming you’re telling the truth for once, can go back to the drawing board and I can focus on working with Owen to do what we need to do in the ring.”
“And you don’t find it odd that you’re struggling so much to focus on being locked into a wrestling mindset for a change? Not when it’s been one of the few lone constants about how you function?”
Nemesis made a good point, but it was one Aaron already knew. He wasn’t going to give the demon the satisfaction of acknowledging they were right, knowing full well it was an easy trap to get baited into. On the plus side, he could see the Sanctuary slowly growing closer, meaning that whatever this monster’s game was this time, their window of opportunity was about to be slammed shut in accomplishing whatever they came here to do.
Nemesis made a noise, presumably to try and say something else since they were no doubt just as aware of what would soon be upon them if they kept walking, but the noise was quickly drowned out by a loud rumbling that easily reminded one of thunder. They both stopped and turned in the direction of the hanging darkness, and Aaron’s concern spiked when he saw what looked like a soundwave given physical form suddenly rippling across the landscape. He turned to start making a break towards the Sanctuary, but he barely got moving before the wave enveloped both him and Nemesis, far faster than he’d perceived. As it moved through them, they both dropped to their knees and clutched at their heads, every last nerve ablaze with pure fear that something hidden away in that darkness was the cause of all of it, but for as much as they both felt they knew exactly what it was, there was just enough uncertainty to leave behind traces of doubt that they truly knew anything at all. Aaron knew for sure that his ears were ringing with a mixture of thunder, static and what reminded him of the roar of a terrifying beast that was not meant to be heard by human ears, which only seemed to rock him even more than he’d anticipated.
It had only lasted a few seconds, and yet the feeling lingered for more than enough time to make the creative soul rethink the situation at hand.
As he chanced to turn his gaze to Nemesis, he noticed that the entity was recovering from this a little quicker than he was, but that by no means meant they weren’t as shellshocked by whatever had just happened. Past experience dictated that Nemesis was certainly willing to take risks if need be if it meant trying to capitalize on whatever opening they had to rip control away from their host, but even then they sought to minimize the amount of damage they would take if the gambit didn’t pay off, especially if they weren’t operating at full strength. Truth be told, Nemesis was far more physically fragile than one might think if they could actually see into Aaron’s mind and understand everything that existed within, strengthened only be whatever weakened Aaron from a mental standpoint to use as literal fuel.
There was very little reason for them to willingly take a hit like that, even if it didn’t seem to rock them as much as it did him, in the state they were in now, which cemented the revelation that this nightmare that was notorious for lying and using whatever underhanded tactic they could latch onto in order to gain power and control was, for perhaps the first time ever, being completely honest with its creator.
“You alright?”
If that didn’t cement how bizarre this whole situation had become and how much it wasn’t sitting well in Aaron’s gut, then he truly didn’t know anything anymore. He managed to stagger back to his feet, still trying to get his bearings, but he and Nemesis had kept their eyes locked as the creative soul tried to make sense of the concern that the nightmare of negativity was never known to show, assuming it had even been possible up until now.
“I’ll be fine, though I might be a little more inclined to hear you out now after… whatever the hell just happened.”
“I’m assuming it’s safe to say you’ve never tried to put an appearance to the concept of paranoia like you did with me and the concept of every negative emotion that runs through your brain?”
Aaron slowly shook his head. The thought had never crossed his mind, though he’d never really needed to ponder the concept of paranoia much before now. Granted, he’d had his moments of feeling like he was drowning in the concept. It was hard not to given how much he seemed to be some sort of supernatural magnet for the worst possible scenarios a human being could reasonably go through, but the feeling had never been as intense as it was now and he’d had no reason to try and paint it in such a light before.
“The only thing I know for sure is that, whatever that dark cloud is, it’s your imagination trying to put a physical appearance to the feeling. I also know that a cloud sitting in the sky isn’t the end of it, because something about that thing since it’s parked itself there has given off the vibe that it’s growing, evolving… into what, I’m not even sure you’re intentionally trying to imagine at this point.”
“OK… that creates a new problem I need to figure out, especially if that thing turns out anything like you did.”
“You can be witty all you want Aaron, but trust me when I say that whatever this ‘paranoia’ is trying to become… it’s going to be far worse than I’ve ever been. I want to be mad that it’s showing up and trying to steal my proverbial place here, but I think you know, deep down, the same thing I do: I’ll be just as much of a casualty to that thing’s power as anyone else existing here and, at the end of the day, you especially.”
Aaron just stared at Nemesis, trying to ponder exactly what they were getting at. He couldn’t deny that something deep in his subconscious was setting off every alarm he could think of after what he’d just felt, which was unlike anything he’d ever been rattled by in his own imagination. Whatever this Paranoia was trying to become, a dark horizon was merely a cocoon stage at best. Something about Nemesis’s words also seemed to trigger the realization of exactly why they had seemingly recovered quicker than he did: he was the host. This was all in his head, and that show of force from Paranoia wasn’t necessarily aimed at the two of them. It had been directed towards everything that gave this place form within his imagination; a direct attack on Aaron’s senses and mental capacity as a whole. He’d actually never been here the few times he’d felt such a thing in the past from either Nemesis or anything else that was trying to actively fight against him from within, which would explain why it seemed to hit him twice as hard as it did the abomination standing before him.
“Alright, I’ll bite. Since you seem to have a better idea of what’s going on here at the moment, I’m willing to hear you out, as much as we both know I trust you about as far as I can realistically throw you.”
“Believe me, I’m going to hate myself for the words that are about to leave my mouth, but this is going to be as painful for me to say as it will be for you to hear. I’m willing to offer a truce.”
At that, Nemesis slowly extends their hand, which only seems to make Aaron even more confused and apprehensive.
“I can already tell you that it’s going to take the combined efforts of you and virtually every being you’ve got here to ultimately get rid of that thing, and like it or not, that includes me. Your overall mental stability is in jeopardy, and even if that sounds tempting, I’m in no position to be able to try and cut Paranoia off in taking advantage of it without being ripped to pieces myself. So, as much as it’s literally going to hurt me to assist you in putting you in a better place internally, I’m willing to set aside our differences-”
“No deal.”
Nemesis looked stunned at being cut off by that response, but Aaron’s eyes were narrowed into a glare that made it clear he was standing firm on this decision.
“I don’t think you understand-”
“No, YOU don’t see this picture the same way I do, and I’m not going to let myself take the bait. You’ve given me no reason to ever trust you… back when things were far less stable around here, when Dreambender and Gleeful had burned their bridges with me, I was still willing to try and make amends because I knew exactly what drove them to do it and know full well that despite their overwhelming power, they’re still just kids reacting in a way that kids in their position would after the way they were seemingly slighted. But you? From the very second you were created, your very existence as what you are made it clear that you were always going to do whatever it took to break me down and assume control to finish driving me off the proverbial cliff. Even if you’re right, even if there’s actually some truth to your words for once, I would rather take the risk of finding a solution to this problem that doesn’t involve selling my soul in exchange for your cooperation, because I know you too well by now… the very second I let my guard down when this is all over, you’ll strike. And I’m not going to lose everything I’ve tried to gain despite your attempts to destroy me even if my life depended on it.”
Aaron turned and began to start heading to the Sanctuary entrance once more, but he didn’t get far before Nemesis called out to him again.
“You’re really going to turn down my help? I’ll admit, I’ve never given you a reason to trust me, but even you have always been a little smarter about practicing self-preservation inside your head as opposed to outside of it. After all, you believe you know your mind better than anyone else could just because it’s yours.”
“I think you might’ve actually forgotten who you’re talking to. If you know me half as well as you like to think you do, then you’d realize there’s always more than one solution to every problem if you’re willing to think outside the box a little more than usual. I KNOW there’s another way to stop whatever that thing is, regardless of whether this is all a game of yours or not, and I’ll find it… without your help.”
Aaron gives Nemesis no further room to argue as he storms off, quickly covering the remaining space that allows him inside the Sanctuary and away from having to deal with the toxic terror any further. Nemesis just watches him go, slowly retracting their hand before they let a bitter laugh escape their lips before vanishing from the scene with one last thought that Aaron will never hear.
“You’re a fool Aaron, and the pride you take in your creative efforts will be your undoing somehow, someway. Mark my words.”
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
There are a lot of things I could talk about right now, and yet, none of them feel appropriate for where we stand at this very point in time.I could discuss the fact that the win Owen and I picked up last week for the Tag League not only kept our hopes alive at first, but also marks the first time I’ve actually started off a new year in my SCW career in the win column.
I could bring up the fact that this week’s Breakdown feels like I’m stepping back onto my home turf in a sense, as Tacoma’s only about an hour drive away from Seattle.
There’s also the obvious that because a certain someone decided that he could rectify being a sore loser by trying to screw over others, barring some sort of miracle I’m not sure Owen and I would honestly feel comfortable with because of what we’d know it would bring, we are effectively eliminated from the Tag League at this point, even in the face of the fact that we have collectively remained unbeaten in the proper sense.
I could talk about any and all of those topics… but I won’t.
The fact of the matter is, like it or not, Owen and I still have two matches left to go in this thing, and at this point, none of it honestly matters. Our match this week should have been our biggest test to date, the greatest challenge standing between us and potentially being able to take this thing by knocking off A/C Unit, who have been virtually unstoppable in their entire run and are aiming to close it out with a win that will force a semi-final with Bree and Sienna. You can’t get stakes any higher than the winner effectively having control of the block aside from that one outstanding team still in the mix that we’d both prefer to lose in this scenario. Instead, Owen and I can only hope to play spoiler now, and because of who would benefit from it, it’s a bittersweet feeling that they’re going to happily gloat about until they eventually run out of breath.
In that sense, logic would dictate that the smart call here would be for the two of us to just throw in the towel. We hand this match over to A/C Unit to force a scenario where, assuming this whole thing wraps up at the pay-per-view in about a week and a half, Bree is going to have to try and steal Sienna’s whole ‘IronAngel’ thing by potentially wrestling up to three separate matches in one night, something that I don’t believe she’s realized is a possibility out of this whole endeavor considering how focused she’s been on the World Title situation.
And yet… as much as we don’t want to just stroke Bree and Sienna’s already overinflated egos, Owen and I aren’t just going to let the two of you have this without a fight.
And if Asher wants to try and question that, he need only to look back at his own words from not that long ago to understand why I have absolutely no reason to let him and Cid have this that easily.
When you addressed me going into the battle royal back at Last Laugh Asher, you made it clear that you were questioning whether or not I still had the passion and the drive to be the kind of wrestler that so many believe I can be. You reminded me of what I have accomplished and the fights I’ve had where I showed signs of finally reaching that next level, just as you both reminded me of how much I seemed to slip and seemingly criticized me for being more willing to stand beside my friends and family in their fight than caring about what I wanted to accomplish for myself. You said all of this while confidently declaring that you would win that battle royal and go on to face Glory for the gold once the dust had settled.
You accomplished that, and in the process, you made this match far more personal than I think you truly comprehend.
I’ll give you this: maybe you’re right about how much I’m willing to sacrifice myself for the people that mean something to me because that’s just the kind of person that I am. Maybe I haven’t figured out how to be able to help them put an end to all the bullshit that has threatened all of us as a whole while trying to sort out my own individual endeavors like you seem to have done in the face of trying to help Cid deal with a false god. Maybe I haven’t been doing this for long enough to know how to reach that crucial balance even though virtually my entire SCW career has seen any attempt to make something of myself be weighed down by someone else who wants to pick a fight with me for whatever reason they’ve convinced themselves is worth it in the end.
Despite all of that, however, I know that I can see the bigger picture of this match.
The fact of the matter is, this situation isn’t just about me. It’s about Owen as well, and what we’ve been able to accomplish together in the face of the adversity we’ve both had to endure through every last little game of the likes of Sienna and Gio ever since this tournament started. It’s easy to look at this match and say that we should simply not bother because we can’t win and it gives us a way to take an indirect shot at our enemies. But at the end of the day… if we do that, then they win. Regardless of how much we could set them back, we’d be stooping to their level of pettiness at the cost of our own careers and personal beliefs, and that gives them far more ammo to work with than a win that gives them the block outright.
For one, just because they would win now doesn’t mean they’re in the clear yet, because a win like this on top of everything else the two of us have been proving together prior to the start of this whole thing make sit hard to ignore us when the Tag League is all set and done and the plan for the future needs to be addressed.
Also, I seriously doubt you would go through the trouble of making such a speech only to just accept a free win with no strings attached, would you Asher?
This match might not be about trying to win the Tag League anymore, but a win for Owen and I sets the stage for the aftermath, where Bree and Sienna could face the very real possibility that even if they do win the whole thing and get to parade around as Tag Champions, we’ll be the first ones knocking on the door to make them prove they can actually beat us without Sienna forcing a situation that hands them a win they never truly earned and will never admit to. Hell, the same could honestly be said of whoever is holding those belts when all is set and done, because anyone from A/C Unit to the top teams from the other block or even Lucas and Chris could be slotted into that same position and need to accept that this hunt doesn’t stop just because the tournament’s over.
If you want to talk about right here and now, however, then this match means addressing the proverbial elephant in the room that you no doubt still want to hold over my head, Asher. You wanted to question me, knowing full well that I’m man enough to admit to all my flaws and shortcomings. You want to know where I am, and the answer, right now, is standing right in front of you, ready to do whatever it takes to make you walk away from this match, regardless of the outcome, with some respect for me and the understanding that even if I haven’t given myself the easiest road to walk and will always take the detour if it helps those that are close to me, I am done letting anyone just assume that I’m complacent with where I’m at, with where the Perfect Pack is at.
You’re free to not believe me if you wish, but you’ll know the second we get to share that ring come Breakdown that I am giving you my best and well beyond, because Owen deserves no less from his brother in arms and you deserve no less from someone hellbent on making a believer out of you as you’ve clearly pointed out I’ve done to so many others once upon a time.
The funny thing is… compared to you Asher, Cid seems to get me just a little bit more.
I’ve heard what you had to say Cid, and I’ll admit that your words were both along the lines of what I’m used to hearing and yet somehow a breath of fresh air all the same. You stood there putting a voice to the idea of looking at me the same way everyone else does, but from a slightly different angle to see the things that no one else wants to see. Yeah, maybe I’m a little weird to most people. I’ve grown used to that assessment over the years because I like to operate just a little bit differently than most others. But I do that because of one reason and one reason alone… this is exactly who I am, and you are one of the rare instances where I’ve crossed paths with someone who actually understands and respects that.
I do the things I do to send a message of my own to the world around me… a message that Owen and Kelcey and Peyton and even Alistaire have accepted and embraced, and that’s to never be afraid of who you truly are. In a world that’s growing more stagnant by the day because far too many people are afraid to let go of the past and the way things used to be, I fight to show them that there’s nothing wrong with embracing a different point of view or taking a different approach to a problem. If I were the same as anybody else, I would have accepted this perceived belief long ago that maybe SCW is beyond my abilities and I’m better off taking a hike. I’ve stayed because the more even good people like Asher begin to question me and whether or not I can do this, the more I begin to realize that I haven’t tried every single solution to resolve the issue at hand and to give up now would mean I’m turning my back on everything that I preach to the masses and everyone who accepts and believes in me because of that.
As you heard me say all those months ago… hopes and dreams will never die.
The fact that you were willing to step back into the fray after all these years, knowing full well the risks you were taking in the process, is proof that you, just like me, aren’t willing to just live in the past and accept things as they are now. Maybe you could have stayed out of the ring and never taken the chance, to begin with, but then you’d forever be pondering the age-old question of ‘what if.’ What if you had never returned to the ring in the first place to know for sure what would happen, what if you had clung to the past and been content instead of trying something new? You might think that people like Chad Evans have a point in that being the safer option, but regardless of how you view the man, I know for a fact that people like him only say those things to guys like you because, deep down, they’re afraid.
Chad isn’t doing what he’s doing because it’s ‘good for you’ no matter what he claims. He’s doing this because he’s afraid to accept that you were willing to try and take another stab at this without him, and his response is to desperately try to remind you of what you once were because everything he does, no matter how sickening it may be, is to prove that people can’t change… a reminder he needs to preach to himself every single day because he’s just as afraid to admit that SCW can and will move on without him, just as you can.
Wednesday night isn’t going to be about him though, as much as his fragile ego wishes to believe otherwise, and it’s not about The Wonderland’s latest efforts to try and burn SCW to the ground or Bree and Sienna growing complacent with the fact that they believe they hold all the cards when this year’s only just getting started. For you Cid, this is about getting to test yourself against two men who have been called time and again the future of SCW, to prove to yourself why Asher was willing to stand by your side this entire time and remind the world of why you are a legendary name within this company. That said, you know as well as I do that the only way you can truly get that challenge is if we come at the two of you determined to win despite what it would mean for your run, because whatever you prove against us will also send a message to those who question why you’re still here, the answer loud and clear no matter how unwilling they are to accept it.
The Tag League may be over for Owen and me despite what still remains on our schedule, but that doesn’t mean that life in SCW as a whole has to come to a screeching halt. What we do in the ring against the two of you now holds meaning for what awaits us both down the road, both as a message to those who continue to try and start a war with us that they believe they can win and a warning to every champion, regardless of which title we’re talking about, that we are still very much in the fight to try and earn our place in the history books.
Breakdown will present to the world four men who are willing to put it all on the line, regardless of the stakes, just because that’s the way it should be done.
And should the Perfect Pack stand tall at the end of the night, no one will be able to deny the statement we’ll make, no matter how delusional they’ve ultimately become.