Glory Braddock vs. Amelia Nevado

[Wisteria Waltz]

Amelia couldn't stop herself from trembling in the chair she was seated in at the hospital. She wasn't sure if it was from rage or terror, but not even Luz had been able to stop her body from shaking and twitching as she sat there, barely tuned in to the world around her.

She knew that things hadn't been too bad, thankfully. The doctors had confirmed that the bullet only grazed Ivy's shoulder and hadn't actually ripped through it, so no significant damage was done aside from a noticeable wound that had to be closed up. Ivy was still in pain, but she wasn't seriously hurt, nor was it an injury that was going to keep her down for very long.

Still, Ivy had ended up missing her chance to wrestle tonight, though she was reassured that the whole show was being canceled and rescheduled as a precaution for the safety of the rest of he promotion's roster. As far as Amelia was aware, SCW was still planning on hosting Breakdown next week, especially with reassurance from local law enforcement that there were hellbent on making sure nothing like this happened again, to this group or anybody else. Avery, Darius and Evie were already assisting with the efforts to comb every last inch of the city for any more Empire members waiting to strike, and backup from the NCA was also on its way in from Britain to continue the hunt.

It didn't change the fact that Ivy had gotten hurt... and, in her mind, it was all Amelia's fault.

Sure, Ivy was sitting up in her bed looking completely fine aside from the wrap that she knew was around the woman's shoulder where the wound was, happily chatting away with Luz, Henry and Gage like nothing had happened, but it didn't stop Amelia from struggling to come to terms with the fact that her oldest friend had once again gotten hurt because of something to do with her.

Nor did it stop Ivy from noticing her friend's spiral.

“Hey, can you guys give Amelia and I some privacy for a few minutes?” she asked them.

Amelia's head snapped up at that, eyes wide and nervous as she watched her wife and their friends all nod in agreement and step out of the room. Luz is the only one who lingered, but only long enough to kiss her wife on the cheek and whisper in Spanish that everything was going to be alright. Amelia could only nod as she watched Luz close the door behind her, before her nervous gaze turned towards Ivy, who gave her a look that was both firm but clearly happy.

“I'm sor-” she started to say.

“Don't,” Ivy quickly cut her off. “You have nothing to apologize for, Ames. Are you alright?”

“Am I...?” Amelia nearly choked on her parroted words in disbelief. “Are YOU alright, Ivy? You literally took a bullet for me!”

“And I would do it again in a heartbeat,” Ivy immediately replied. “You know why? Because it was my choice to save you from probably not even making it to your next Breakdown, much less see the sun rise tomorrow. My choice... that's more than either of us had during your seventh birthday party.”

“But... your wrestling match...” Amelia still seemed like she was struggling to fully comprehend, which is when Ivy kicked off her covers and removed herself from the bed to take Amelia's hand and pull her up to her feet, her grin meeting Amelia's stunned gaze.

“I'll have plenty more chances to prove myself in the ring once the doctors fully clear me,” Ivy stated, “which probably won't take too long since, again, I was only grazed and the wound's not that serious. If that shot had hit as intended... you would've never had another chance for anything. No match coming up, no Rise to Greatness, no SCW, no life with Luz or friendship with me, nothing.”

It took Amelia's brain a moment for that to fully sink in, but once it did, she couldn't keep herself from chuckling over how absurd it all sounded, even if her brain felt she had been justified in feeling guilty. But Ivy was right... what she'd done had been 100% of her own volition, and a minor wound was a small price her friend had willingly paid to make sure she still had a life to live.

“You're right,” she finally admitted, to Ivy's widening grin. “It just hurts seeing you get hurt again because of something involving me, but you're right... and thank you, for allowing me to be able to see another day.”

“I get it,” Ivy admitted, “though I have a feeling you'd have been even more regretful in the afterlife. It's one of those things that hurts either way... but, if it helps, I'm sorry for scaring you, even if I saved my best friend's life.”

“Is there... anything I can do for you?” Amelia asked, and Ivy could feel the sincerity echo from Amelia's voice right through her very being.

“Actually...” Ivy trailed off to pull Amelia into a strong one-armed hug, feeling Amelia's arms wrap around her in return. “You can stand strong and show Caleb and his whole Empire that not even this will keep Amelia freaking Nevado down or throw her off. I'll shake this off, I promise, so promise me that you'll rise above this and walk into Breakdown ready to kick some ass despite this incident.”

Amelia couldn't help but laugh and wipe a tear from her eye, not out of sadness or fear, but of joy at the Ivy she knew and loved as her best friend since childhood finding a different way to look at this situation, to the point where she only really had one response that was truly fitting:

“I promise, Ivy.”

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The first thing that greets our eyes is the familiar landmark of the Gateway Arch, easily the most recognizable landmark in all of St. Louis. We linger on this site for a moment before we begin to pull away from it, making it clear that the Arch isn't quite our destination this time around. That said, its silhouette still dominates the skyline even as we get to appreciate more and more of the city and some of the many sites it has to offer for anyone visiting. From this angle, we even get a breathtaking view of the Mississippi River running behind the Arch, and in front of the Arch lies the Enterprise Arena, the site of the first Breakdown on the road to Rise to Greatness. As beautiful as all of this is, however, the view feels maybe slightly tainted by the overcast sky, the clouds not grey enough to threaten rain but prominent enough to hide the sunlight. Perhaps this is a fitting atmosphere as we realize we're on a hotel balcony, and sitting at a table and looking out over the city is Amelia Nevado. Her face wears a neutral expression as she takes in the city spanning before her, almost as if something is on her mind. Whatever it is, she seems to shake it off before turning her gaze to us, taking a deep breath before she seems to relax a little bit.

“Well, I tried, guys. I wish I could sit here and say that I won the Taking Hold of the Flame battle royal and will get to experience the main event of Rise to Greatness, but unfortunately, that didn't happen. Not for a lack of trying, though... truth be told, I wasn't expecting to actually pull it off this year, and I believe I said as such going in. But, as the old saying goes, you miss 100% of the shots you don't take. That's why I still stepped up to the plate and gave it my best shot, even despite a few individuals having me as a target for one reason or another or certain others saying it would've been better had I just backed out. Last year, I was perfectly fine with not taking a stab at it, as Luz and I were upfront about wanting to keep our primary focus on carrying the torch for the tag team division and lighting the way for any team to step up and give us their absolute best. But this year? This year, I had no excuse not to at least see how far I could go, and I'd like to believe I had a solid performance.

Maybe that sounds ridiculous to many of you out there, but I'm willing to take the small victories as proof of my progress and build on them moving forward. So I may not have a World Title match at the biggest show of SCW's calendar year... that doesn't mean I can't make enough of an impression to prove myself worthy of another opportunity. That's the beauty of this road towards Rise to Greatness not being so clear-cut: I have plenty of time to assess my options and work towards proving I deserve whatever awaits me on that night, no matter what it may be. Perhaps I'll earn an opportunity at another championship to finally prove to people that I am just as good as my wife is, since I know many of you still seem to doubt that because you only judge us on accolades alone. Or, maybe one of the several people who seem to enjoy keeping my name on their lips want to settle this on a stage where the lights are brightest, seeking that ultimate validation. Whatever it is, I'm looking forward to proving that I'm ready for it.

That said, I'm more than aware of another crowd out there, being quite vocal about believing that whatever I wish to work towards for Rise to Greatness this year doesn't matter, that I can simply say the word and manifest whatever destiny I desire without having to earn or prove anything. And I know exactly why they not only believe that, but also desperately want me to hear their voices and give in to that temptation.”

Amelia taps her finger on the table, and it's at this point that many of us likely notice the familiar manila envelope that's been resting there this entire time. It's not hard to guess what's inside that envelope, but even as Amelia turns her gaze down towards it as the wind picks up enough to catch her hair in the breeze, the uncertainty in her eyes is clear.

“It's no secret at this point that I'm the last member of my team still holding onto my Trios contract, and I'm aware the clock is ticking for me to use it. Maybe you'd all like to see me cash it in and simply include myself into the Rise to Greatness main event anyway, just give myself the biggest World Title opportunity I could ever have on top of a chance to not only pick things up once more with the Fall of Man, but also perhaps prove something to Xander as well. Or maybe I could just use it on any of the other titles whose Rise to Greatness dance cards are still waiting to be filled. Why work towards earning my place on the biggest show of the year when I could just turn this over and make it a reality?

If it were anybody else, or if this were the Amelia Blythe still corrupted by her parents who simply believed the wrestling business owed me for gracing it with her presence... maybe that would be the case. But not me... not the woman I am today, the woman I truly want to be.

Perhaps if we were talking about another show, I would assess my options a little more, but I'm not going to sit here and simply interject myself into a position on the biggest show of the year when I know I don't deserve it. I've remained quiet about even still holding onto this contract because... being completely transparent? I've been trying to prove that I deserve to hold it, that I truly deserve whatever opportunity I will ultimately use it on. Winning this contract the way I did last year still hasn't sat right with me, and while I know I will have to use it very soon... it won't be at Rise to Greatness. Not when I know I can use this as an opportunity to not only prove to the roster, to all of you, and especially to myself, that whatever awaits me at Rise to Greatness is something I well and truly earned. And maybe, along the way and at Rise to Greatness itself, I'll also prove that I'm ready for whatever I choose to do with this golden opportunity.”

Amelia takes a deep breath as she slides the envelope containing the contract away from herself, and the familiar hand of La Pequeña Luz can be seen reaching into the shot to retrieve it. We hear Luz's voice say something in Spanish and Amelia responds in kind, nodding her head before Luz can be heard shuffling back around us and into their hotel room. Amelia seems to take a moment to herself, her mind thinking over the words that Ivy shared with her not that long ago, and that gets her nodding to herself as she takes another deep breath, and it's at this point that the familiar fire is back in her eyes.

“Speaking of golden opportunities... it's almost poetic, in a weird sort of way, that this year's road to Rise to Greatness will start in the very same city where last year's Rise to Greatness emanated from, and my road is going to begin with one of the people it ended with last year on the grandest stage of them all. Long time no see, Glory, and I'm willing to bet you're already prepared to try and erase the memory of last year when Luz and I finally proved that, no matter how many setbacks we had to endure to get to that point, we were able to push ourselves and improve enough to earn that win over you and Brittany, fair and square. It's as we've always preached: anybody can beat anybody else on any given night if you work hard enough, and I've only gotten better since our last encounter. Of course, you have as well, and I'd be a fool to ignore the run you had as Adrenaline Champion for a while after that match, which is living proof all on its own of how quickly you picked yourself back up and found a way to bounce back.

Of course, there's an elephant in the room that I'm sure you and many others are waiting for me to address, that being the fact that you were supposed to be the number one entrant in the battle royal and instead opted to pull out and find a different path. Am I disappointed in you making that decision? Maybe a little bit, going back to what I said earlier because for all anybody, yourself included, knows, you could have pulled it off and gone all the way. But at the end of the day, it was your decision to make, and considering neither Luz nor myself took part last year, I would be a hypocrite to take any sort of issue with a decision you made.

The attitude over feeling like you deserve a World Title opportunity at some point in time based purely on your status is a bit of a different story, however, which explains why you're holding yourself to such a high standard that you're going to risk crashing and burning if you aren't careful.

Think back to the start of this very same road last year, back when a World Tag Title clash between The Light In The Darkness and Twisted & Sadistic was all but set in stone for the biggest show of the year... until Luz and I got caught because we were worrying about what was still too far ahead of us that we couldn't see what was right in front of us until it was too late. Do you remember what our initial response to that loss was, Glory? We were willing to accept having lost out on that Rise to Greatness moment in favor of getting CHBK to agree to lock us out of any title contention, period, until we ran a gauntlet of our own design and proved we could beat everybody on the SCW roster at least once. That was how much we cared about proving ourselves here in this company, what being not only World Tag Team Champions but a part of SCW altogether meant to us that we were willing to risk throwing it all away just to bury ourselves under immense pressure that, in hindsight, would have probably broken the both of us.

Maybe it's not the exact same scenario, Glory, but when I look at where you're at right now and how much you're making it clear that you need to beat me, like this outcome has already been decided and you just need to put the final nail in the proverbial coffin, it doesn't feel too far off. You're not wrong when you say that I'm excited about this one, that I would love nothing more than to make a statement by renewing this little friendly rivalry of ours and getting back that win from two years ago where you cut my Television Title reign short in my very first defense... but just like with Ryan right before Taking Hold of the Flame, the more you push yourself into believing you cannot, under any circumstances, lose this match or else Rise to Greatness may not even be in the cards for you, the more likely I am to seize an opening and be the one to catch you this time, not simply because I will have proven that, at least on this night, I'm finally good enough to beat Glory Braddock one-on-one, but because you're making the same mistake I did last year that I am all too familiar with.

Barring some sort of unforeseen injury or you choosing not to make it happen, I will gladly tell you, to your face Glory, that you will make it to Rise to Greatness, no matter where this road takes you. It may not lead to exactly what you're hoping for, but every match is a chance to prove yourself and every setback is an opportunity to learn, grow, and adjust to make an even greater statement next time. That's why I am the woman I am today, and that's why I'm going to happily meet you in the ring over there, at the Enterprise Arena, come Breakdown and tear the house down with you. The real question, Glory, is how prepared are you for someone who's just as hungry as you are and isn't just going to sit here and let you have this win all because 'I can afford the loss' when I humbly disagree. And should things turn out that I am the better wrestler, at least on this night... how do you respond in the face of this setback to make whatever you want to happen at Rise to Greatness a reality regardless?

I wish you the best of luck come Breakdown Glory, and I hope you have the answer to that question in mind, just in case, because I don't plan on leaving St. Louis without a one-on-one win over you to my name if I can help it.”

Amelia slowly rises out of her chair, letting the wind continue to catch her hair in its breeze as she stands against the St. Louis skyline and the silhouette of the Gateway Arch, a smile on her lips. It's not a smile of overconfidence, but one she hopes will challenge Glory to put forth her absolute best no matter who wins come Breakdown. As we slowly fade out, we know one thing for absolute certain: whatever Rise to Greatness has in store for Amelia Nevado, she plans on earning it with nothing more than her bare hands and the wrestling skills that brought her this far in the first place.