Clyde Sutter vs. Amelia Nevado

[Wisteria Waltz]

OOC: Chronologically, read Luz's CD before you read Amelia's for this match, as the events of Luz's CD basically lead into the events of this one.
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Just when Amelia didn't think she could feel any lower than she already did, Fatal Fortunes had to prove her wrong.

She had walked into that pair of Breakdowns, fully ready for whatever the random draws had to throw at her, determined to show the world that for as much as they openly respected her wife, she was just as worthy because she had worked just as hard and would only push herself harder to make 2026 her year. Even if she didn't get drawn for a title shot or a chance to earn one down the line, a win to start off the year and reverse her fortunes would go a long way in smothering the flames of her frustration from the past few months.

Instead... she had been humiliated, and by someone she could very well be crossing paths with again very soon down the line.

Facing one of the Glimmer Sisters in and of itself wouldn't have been an issue. Amelia owed them for the shenanigans they pulled to literally steal a win by disqualification to eliminate her team from the Trios Tournament a few months ago, so she was game to actually make Gina properly earn a win over her this time. Unfortunately, Fatal Fortunes almost seemed to spite her yet again, just as it did with the infamous Selena Frost no-show incident a few years ago, conveniently rolling that this particular match was “sponsored by KABLAMia” which apparently meant any of the 'goodies' Derek Adonis was selling for his brand were legal. Amelia had expected some twin trickery and was ready for it this time, considering her older siblings were twins and she was all too familiar with their tactics and had proven so in the past... she hadn't expected getting lube squirted into her eyes, the offer of a vibrator to be used on her, and especially Gina's top 'conveniently' ripping so she could roll Amelia up, stacking her up just right to practically shove her bra into Amelia's face and steal yet another win over her.

The dejected look on her face as the Glimmers danced their way to the back like they'd actually earned anything spoke volumes that were far more deafening than the fan reaction in that moment.

Fatal Fortunes hadn't been a total loss for The Light In The Darkness, though... Luz had stood strong against Clyde Sutter in an Ironman Match to retain her U.S. Title, and then overcame Alex Belmont in a Biker Chain Match to earn the two of them a future shot at the World Tag Team Titles, meaning one more chance to pay the Glimmers back for all of their bullshit... or a chance to prove herself against two wrestlers she knew very well and respected in hopes of reaffirming the respect they had for her, even if Selena and Xander couldn't stand each other.

And yet... in her brain, that was the problem. Luz had won both of those matches, Luz had won the Tag Title opportunity for them given the unique stipulation for the match she'd been drawn for, Luz was still undefeated at Fatal Fortunes despite always running one of the most impressive gauntlets throughout the entire event. Damon Cage was eager to challenge Luz for the U.S. Title at A Taste of Things to Come, Meghan Strader was eager to face Luz in the ring one more time and get a definitive answer on who was better between them.

Luz.

Luz.

Luz.

Amelia grabbed the pillow off of her bed and practically tried to smother herself with it, as if that would somehow tone down the negative thoughts rampaging through her mind like a hurricane. She genuinely hated that she was even thinking this way. Luz was the love of her life, the light that had guided her towards the person she truly wanted to be. Once upon a time, their roles had been reversed, with Amelia being the first between them to win singles gold and even coming very close to winning the very title Luz has now held three times while her beloved was struggling to even really get out of the blocks when they weren't teaming together. Luz had, rightfully, been frustrated about it, but they had talked it out and ultimately come away far better together as a result.

So why was it so hard now to let Luz in and admit to her frustrations face-to-face instead of resorting to what she knew were potshots behind her wife's back when she spoke her piece for Fatal Fortunes?

'It's because you're a Blythe, and you know if Luz helps you solve this problem, that proves how weak you've become.'

“Leave me alone...” Amelia groaned beneath the pillow as that familiar voice decided now was the perfect time to plague her thoughts. At least if it was the haunting remnants of her parents still trying to claim any power over her, she could persevere, but knowing it was her own voice in her head, claiming to be the 'real' her and trying to undo years of working to free herself from every terrible practice her parents had drilled into her skull... it wasn't a voice she could easily ignore, and the fact that it wasn't exactly wrong made her sick to her stomach.

'You have no one but yourself to blame for that embarrassing defeat, Amelia,' the haughty voice she had despised using in the earliest days of her career taunted her. 'You were far too aggressive, far too desperate... you played right into her hands, let her flaunt her goods and make a fool out of you instead of making her play your game, one you know she would've lost. But hey, at least she actually had a bra on this time, unlike that incident from Rise to Greatness last year...'

“Stop trying to make me feel like I'm just some useless lesbian,” Amelia spat as she sat up before hurling the pillow at the wall, hoping it would at least make her feel a little better.

'I don't need to do anything for you to embarrass yourself like that,' her inner voice teased once more. 'Just as I don't need to do anything for you to get riled up by the unfortunate truth that seems to have become the talk of the locker room now. I mean, it didn't take much for Clyde Sutter to make you take his bait, considering he probably sees you as a stepping stone straight back to Luz and her title.'

“You think I care?” Amelia snapped. “Let him think he's got me right where he wants me... he still has to actually back up his words in the ring. I've beaten him before, I was at ringside when he faced Luz, I know what he's capable of and I know I can beat him and start turning all of this around.”

'Can you, though?'

Three simple words, but they were enough to pierce the proverbial armor Amelia was trying to protect herself with. Deep down, she knew that she had what it took to beat Clyde, and she'd proven just that around this same time last year. Clyde had been hired like the assassin he claims to be by the Fall of Man for the sole purpose of trying to soften her up for them, and his efforts had ultimately failed. And yet... once again, that voice in her head had a painfully good point. She had been far too aggressive and desperate against Gina, and she'd come off looking no different when she accepted Clyde's challenge for the pay-per-view. That wasn't the Amelia Blythe that had been raised to be the perfect wrestler, nor was that the Amelia Nevado who represented the technical brilliance that balanced her wife's fast and furious aerial assault.

For a brief moment, Amelia felt grateful that, guided by her frustrations, she had insisted on having a room separate from her wife when they arrived at this hotel in Phoenix, because the last thing she wanted was for Luz to be any more worried about her than she already was if she saw Amelia practically arguing with the air around her as far as it looked. That moment didn't last long, though, as she was almost immediately consumed by a crippling sense of loneliness, left only with her own thoughts to torment her with this belief that she just wasn't good enough, especially when compared to Luz.

Maybe, just maybe... getting her head screwed back on straight and beating Clyde would turn everything around. Maybe she could somehow build her own winning streak, look just as unstoppable as Luz seemed to according to the commentary team, maybe find a way to earn the same opportunities Luz had been making the most of going forward.

'That's an awful lot of maybes in that line of thought,' her so-called 'true' self chimed in again. 'Last I checked, a Blythe never dealt in maybes, a Blythe dealt in absolutes.'

Amelia found herself growling, her hands moving to grab at her hair as if pulling on it would silence this persistent demon in her brain or solve anything. Thankfully, she was stopped from actually attempting anything by a knock at the door. Thinking it was Luz coming to try and check on her for the billionth time, she opened her mouth to claim she wanted to be left alone, but she was beaten to the punch by a different voice calling through the door.

“Amelia?” she heard Darius ask. “Can you open up, please? I was hoping to talk with you.”

'Ah, the man you may as well have turned to as a replacement father,' the inner Amelia crooned. 'Surely he can help you about as well as he's been able to make any progress in stopping The Empire from intervening in your life.'

Amelia huffed at that assessment as she stood up and made her way to the door. So what if part of her wanted to see Darius as a replacement father? He'd been far better to her than Aleister ever had, and he'd once been her father's friend and knew him well enough to absolutely know what he'd put her and her siblings through all in the name of a family legacy was wrong. As for The Empire... despite the certainty of this 'other self' haunting her thoughts now, The Empire had been a slippery pack of eels for a very long time and had given every law enforcement group across the globe headaches at this point trying to take them down.

'It's just such a shame that they've fallen silent all of a sudden and left you and your better half alone,' the inner Amelia taunted.

“Be quiet,” Amelia growled under her breath before she opened the door, locking eyes with Darius as he stood patiently out in the hallway. After a moment, she decided to step out and join him, closing the door behind her. “What's up, Darius?”

“I just wanted to check on you,” he stated, and the words immediately caused Amelia to wince. It wasn't a voluntary action on her part, but given the argument she'd just been having with herself, there was still some mental wounds that felt way too fresh. Thankfully, he seemed to notice and cleared his throat. “Luz didn't send me, if that's what you're worried about. I came of my own volition because you've kind of been confined to your room all day, and I wanted to see if you might consider clearing your head with some training for your next match.”

'He's pitying you,' her inner self decided to provide commentary. 'Perfect pick for a brand new father figure.'

Amelia let out a shaky breath at how annoying the voice in her head decided to be right now. “I'll... consider it. Will Luz be joining us?”

“Only if you want her to be,” Darius told her. “I know that things have been... tense, between the two of you for a little bit now. If you need someone to talk to, I swear on my badge I won't share a word of it to Luz if you don't want me to. Or, if you'd feel more comfortable talking to Dr. Bolton, I can see when she'd be available again.”

“I...” Amelia started before she cut herself off with a groan, leaning her head back against the door. “Maybe I should have a session with Celine again? I don't know... I just know that I'm struggling while Luz is succeeding and I hate that part of me hates her for it, but I hate myself more for not being able to rise to her level no matter what I try. I don't-”

“Hey,” Darius cut her off, placing a firm yet comforting hand on her shoulder to try and help ground her. “I get it... more than you may think. I faced my own setbacks when I wrestled and had to watch as your father ascended to a level he then claimed I could never reach. Even now, I'm frustrated by the fact that The Empire continues to be one step ahead of us, slipping through our fingers no matter how closely we watch them. None of this is easy... but when you finally make it happen, that's what's going to make it oh so satisfying when you finally prove that doubt in your head wrong.”

Amelia trembled for a moment, taking deep breaths as she tried to lead Darius's words sink in. She knew he was right, just as she knew Luz had been right this whole time about this just being a rough patch and all she needs is a solid win to regain her footing and turn it all around. If she can beat Clyde on Sunday, then maybe she can really start making some progress again, just like the NCA can keep making progress if they could just nail down where these delusional cultists were hiding and what they were up to now.

'They'll never be able to catch them,' that nagging voice decided to chime in once more.

'And how do you know?' Amelia tried to mentally retort, growing fed up with herself when she never remembered being this smug and arrogant when she was the perfect pride and joy of her family name.

'It's so painfully obvious, I'm almost embarrassed you haven't figured it out yet,' the 'other her' decided to prod once more. 'Then again... maybe you're just refusing to admit it because you don't want to hurt Luz's feelings when she's done nothing but rub her success in your face for months now, accidental or otherwise.'

Amelia couldn't suppress a growl at that, which got Darius raising an eyebrow.

“Amelia?” he gently asked, which seemed to snap her out of it.

“Sorry...” she bowed her head, quietly cursing at herself for immediately slipping back into old habits her parents forced upon her. “You're right, though... I just need to get my head back in the game and-”

“Kick the ass of some fate-obsessed fool like Luz did!”

Both Amelia and Darius turned to see Paul pumping his fist, though the scene honestly just looked as awkward as it felt. Amelia could feel herself cringing a bit inside, even if part of her wanted to appreciate the supportive effort... and the bitter scars deep in her psyche didn't sound too happy at being directly compared to Luz's successes yet again. Darius, however, didn't hide his displeasure.

“I thought I made it clear downstairs that this was to be a private conversation between Amelia and I, Paul,” he sternly stated.

“And yet, you're having it out in the hallway,” Paul pointed out, and the comment actually set something off in Amelia's brain because the next thing she knew, she'd taken a step towards him in a rather threatening manner, only really realizing it had happened when she saw him backing off with his hands raised in innocence. “My apologies, I'm still struggling a bit with all of this.”

“Then maybe you can explain why you came up here when it sounds like Darius told you not to?” Amelia questioned.

“Right, I, um, actually had a very good reason for that...” Paul admitted awkwardly. “Luz is kind of falling apart down in the lobby. She got a phone call from somebody and it got her to snap something fierce. I'll be honest, I didn't even think she was capable of yelling the way she did.”

“And what would've provoked such a reaction?” Darius prodded.

“I'm not quite sure, I couldn't exactly catch the other end of her phone conversation,” Paul admitted. “I think she knew who it was that called her though... someone named Caleb?”

The hallway went so quiet, a pin could drop and you'd hear it echo even through the carpet. Darius's eyes went wide with concern while Amelia grit her teeth, feeling her fists clench until she could hear the knuckles crack.

“Caleb White...” Darius growled.

“Is The Empire finally making a move again?” Amelia asked under her breath.

“Caleb White?” Paul suddenly looked more shocked. “You said that's the leader of The Empire, correct? Does he just... have a way to contact you?”

“Amelia, let me know whenever you're ready to train,” Darius suddenly said. “Right now, though? I think anything happening with The Empire that's back on the table needs to be addressed urgently.”

Amelia didn't even get a chance to respond before Darius was running for the stairs, not wasting a second to go and find out what on earth Caleb could have called Luz about. Amelia felt her skin crawling at the thought of whatever that snake could've said if it got to Luz that badly, and her own feet were moving to follow after Darius without a second thought.

“It's weird, isn't it?” Paul suddenly said, stopping Amelia dead in her tracks.

“What is?” she asked, maybe sounding a little more irritated than she intended, but her wife was probably having a meltdown because of whatever that deranged zealot was up to now and no amount of frustration suffocating her was going to override the far greater problem that still threatened them day after day.

“The Empire's leader suddenly decides to resurface after he's, according to you, been far too quiet for far too long,” Paul noted. “And the first thing he does is target Luz? I mean no offense when I say this, but if I were in his shoes, I would've preyed upon you given everything you're dealing with right now. But I'm thankfully not some kooky cult leader... and maybe Luz's success is more of a burden than we realized.”

With that, Paul walked past her, seemingly taking his sweet time before he began jogging back towards the stairs he'd come up from. Before he turned that corner, though, Amelia caught it: the subtle grin, as if Paul had accomplished something and was laughing to himself about pulling it off. In a situation like this, even if Paul was still so new to the situation with The Empire he was apparently caught up in, something like this wasn't an issue to be taken so lightly.

'Is it sinking in yet?' the 'perfect' Amelia chuckled from deep in her thoughts. 'As I said, it's been so painfully obvious, I actually feel sorry for you. Think about it... some random guy is suddenly targeted by The Empire while you're all left alone by them when you and Luz have been Caleb's top priority for years now. The way this guy acts, the subtle jabs, the smug expressions when he thinks nobody's looking... if that interaction didn't spell it out for you, then it's no wonder why The Empire will keep being a step ahead of everyone.'

Amelia knew the answer her thoughts were trying to dictate to her, she knew it was more obvious than ever now... but she also knew the repercussions of the truth if this was it, and how devastated Luz would be if she realized the mistake she had made. And yet, as much as she didn't want to consider the thought, as much as admitting it made her want to empty her stomach right here in the hallway, there was no denying it... especially if her 'better version' was so confident about figuring this out already.

“Paul is a spy for The Empire...” she numbly admitted to no one but the air around her and that teasing voice in her mind.

'Congratulations, Mrs. Nevado.' She could practically feel the smug grin burning a hole in her head from her self-professed 'true self.' 'Now the question becomes... what are you going to do about it?'

Amelia hated that she didn't have an immediate answer to that question.