Giovanni Aries vs. Selena Frost

[SnowQueenSCW]

OOC: Part 2 of the CD and promo. Promo takes place the day of the pay-per-view. Best of luck!

 
I of the Storm

“The Best I Can Be...”

After all... I'm the one that made him think he had won...

April 5th, 2019
Elsianna's School
12:34pm – lunch break


Don't lose sight of her...Don't lose sight of her...

Selena kept running down the halls, doing her best not to bump into any students as she kept her eyes locked on the platinum-blonde hair of her daughter, who kept running as far away from the cafeteria. Due to the differences in their height alone – not to mention the athletic conditioning Selena had – it should have been easy for her to catch her fleeing daughter. However, not only where the aforementioned travelling children being an issue, effectively slowing her down, but Elsianna had one thing on the wrestler. 

Experience. Knowledge.

The child had spent months and months here – effectively nearly the school year, learning this place, travelling its halls, sitting in its classrooms. And if there was one thing that Selena knew about her oldest daughter, it was how much Elsianna loved to explore. 

She's not running just anywhere... came the random thought. She's going to where she will feel the safest...the farthest from the Stanton boy!

The whole situation still unnerved Selena. First, she couldn't blame the staff that someone had walked into a public school, regarding of how prestigious it was - it was still open-door policy, like a business. Second, she couldn't blame anyone for not acting and stopping them. The Stanton's had picked their time well - when the staff would be busy monitoring all the lunch areas to really pay attention to who was walking around the grounds. And what could the kids do? They didn't know better.

No, as she had thought earlier, the blame - to the Snow Queen - rested on the shoulders OF the Snow Queen. She should have just told Wentworth Stanton, when he had shown up at her A.A. Meeting to just go straight to hell with his demand. But she hadn't... She still wasn't sure why she hadn't. Was she afraid of what he'd do? Did he genuinely have a means to make things...

Why are you thinking about that now?! her mind recoiled angrily. Find Elsa!

Sadly, as her focus returned, Selena was stunned to see... No one. There was not a student anywhere near the hall she found herself. There were stone walls, tiled floors and even a few classrooms behind her, and one, it seems at the farthest end, but besides that and bathroom doors? Nothing. 

Where the hell am I? she thought, irritated that she had lost sight of Elsianna. But as she slowed her jog to simply standing still, a smell wafted into her nostrils, making her feel a little bit queasy. She wasn't 100% sure what the smell was, but it reminded her of oil, gasoline, some kind of gas as well...like in the air.

Maybe some kind of machinery/engineering class? she tried to reason, slowly walking down the hall, stopping at each door to gaze through the window to see inside (it was lunch, after all, so all the rooms were empty).

"Elsa?" She called out to each one as she searched each classroom by viewing through the window. She could see the little desks, book shelves and blackboard of each one, but none of them housed a single person within - including her Elsianna.

"Did I make a wrong turn?" Selena whispered, spinning around on the spot to re-examine her surroundings. Was there another platinum-blonde-haired girl that had come this way and Selena had accidentally gone after her instead of her snowflake?

She was about to head back, retrace her steps, when she heard something. It was light, barely audible, but it was definitely human. In fact, rehearing it in her head, it sounded like sniffling to the Snow Queen. "Hello?!" She called out, scanning the hall and rechecking the classroom closest to her. There was no one there. That only left the room that smelled of oil and machinery or-

In that moment, the young woman from Nome, Alaska, could have smacked herself for being so stupid. The one place she had not checked were the bathrooms, mostly because there was a yellow 'Wet-Floor' sign in front of it and tape attached to that and the walls. On the sign, there was a scribbled note that said, 'Out of Order. Use the bathroom by the library.'

An out of order bathroom in a far-off section of the school where the closest thing to it is the library. Again, Selena could have hit herself as she stepped over the tape. Where else would she go to get away from everyone... Including me...

As carefully as possible, the platinum-blonde moved through the now accessible doorway, ignoring the sight of the stone tiles that made up a wall and the drawings from markers and spray paint that decorated parts of said wall. She wasn't interested in finding out why this place was shut down for renovations. Instead, she kept her mouth shut and her ears on alert for any sight sounds such as the water flowing through the pipes beneath her feet or the sound of an old fan beating noisily above her as it tried t ore gullet the temperature of the room... Or the one, single sniffle that fell upon her ears. 

"Hello?" She asked, though she quickly rememembered that nobody but her should be here in the first place. "Snowflake?"

Silence greeted her, but she pressed on. "If you're here, I need you to please tell me. I'm...I'm sorry for what just happened. I had no idea that those two were going to show up. I was told that the boy was..." She was silent for a moment, unsure of what she wanted to say, but still listening for any sound of acknowledgment from her daughter. Again, her ears quickly picked up a few more sniffles. Quietly, Selena stepped closer to the door of the stall until her hands were pressed up against the door, her palms able to feel the cool plastic of gray. "Please." She tried again. "You have to believe me, little one. I would never have brought you here if I had known they were going to show up."

Again, silence greeted her, but Selena was prepared to keep speaking until her daughter finally spoke back. As she took a breath to start, however, she was suddenly stopped as her ears picked up another sound other than a sniffle or the plumbing of the bathroom. A meek, scared and heartbroken voice coming from the stall - emotions, by the way, Selena knew very well. The timid voice broke the silence in the closed room - as well as break the Snow Queen's heart. 

"You promised me that I never would have to see them again."

"I know, darling." Selena tried, imploring her treasured child to understand, though, in that moment, she wasn't sure what she could tell her daughter so that she could understand.

How bout the truth? came the mocking voice in her head, but it was not Sirus this time around. It was her own voice, talking as if the answer was as simple as breathing.

Slowly lowering herself to her knees, Selena could see that the door - the barrier between herself and Elsianna - did not actually touch the floor normal doors did. Rather, it stopped a good few feet above the tiled floor. For a moment, the Snow Queen thought about crawling under it to corner her daughter, but quickly abandoned the thought. 

"I want to go home..." Came the quiet voice of her daughter on the other side. "I never want to come back here again."
"You don't mean that." Selena implored. "What about your friends? And all the things you were learning here?"

There wasn't an answer, but there had been a need in Elsianna's voice - whether the child knew it or not. Taking a deep breath, Selena quickly pulled her leather jacket off, dumping it on the floor close to her. "Elsa, I'm coming inside." She stated before lowering herself to the floor and crawling under the door space that existed there. Her sweater actually allowed her to slide along the tiles a lot easier and she was quickly on the same side as her daughter. Speaking of which, as the Snow Queen stood up to her knees, she saw her Elsa.

The child's eyes were blood-shot red, and she was huddled in the corner of the wall structure. There was a look of surprise on her face as her mother dusted herself off and then gazed at her. "Elsianna..." She started but young girl simply curled into a tighter ball against the corner. "He's going to...to..." She shook her head, as if to will the horrifying images out of her mind.

"What?" Selena asked, though she dared not move closer than she was to her daughter, of fear of spooking her.
"He's going to burn me again!" Elsianna suddenly blurted out, pulling off both her gloves to reveal the scarred skin Selena had just applied ointment to a short while ago. "He said he'd do it again! He said he'd do it to you!" Elsianna added.

Selena felt her jaw clench, along with her hands tightening into fists, but she did not move. "Elsa...Elsianna..." She whispered softly, but the tone in her voice was cold, unflinching and it was enough to get her daughter's attention, the frightened eyes meeting her steeled ones.

"Aaron is a boy." Selena spoke. "A child. I've fought adults far scarier than him - in fact..." She spoke bluntly. "He ought to be terrified of me after he did to you!"
"But he said his dad-"

A deep inhale of breath through Selena's nose silenced the young girl, the Snow Queen's irrititation obvious. Quickly kneeling down, Selena reached back under the door to grab her leather jacket, pulling it under and onto their side. Just as swiftly, Selena pulled out the papers in the jacket's breast pocket, immediately dropping the jacket upon retrieving them. "You see these?" Selena showed her daughter.

Elsa nodded her head as she looked at the papers Wentworth Stanton had shoved into Selena's hands when he had surprised her at her A.A. Meeting.

"Aaron's father came to me at my meeting and told me that he had-" Selena started but, seeing her daughter sitting there, still scared, her scarred arms wrapped around her small frame, her approach quickly changed. "You know mommy has some secrets that she likes to keep to herself?" She tried. "Things you know that you're not supposed to tell anyone at school about? Like her meetings with the doctors and such?"

Elsianna slowly nodded her head - understanding, as best as she could that her mommy was referring to her Alcoholics Anonymous meetings.

"Well, Aaron's father found out about that." Selena explained. "And he found out a lot of other stuff about us. You, me, Deanna, all of us..."
Elsianna's eyes widened in alarm. "I knew it..." She whispered, shaking her head, terrified. "Aaron said he could do that."
"Elsa!" Urged the platinum-blonde, regaining her attention and keeping the child from spiralling further into her fear. "He did do that. These papers? He wanted me to sign them - they..." She tried to find the words. "They basically let Aaron off the hook for what he did to you."

Immediately, Selena regretted the words she had found, for before her eyes, she saw her daughter's expression crumple more so. She didn't say anything, merely lowering her head over onto her knees, her frame beginning to shake with uncontrolled tears.

"Elsianna!" Selena called out, slowly moving to her daughter's side. As gently as she could, pale hands gathered the child out of the corner, but instead of further moving her out of the stall, Selena merely took her daughter's place in the corner, sitting back there in order to hold and cradle her snowflake in her arms. 

The child didn't understand the notion of blackmail well enough. Even Selena was unclear about Wentworth Stanton's threat. Not the parameters of said threat, those were clear. Selena was to sign the contract in front of her, effectively dropping any and all charges against the Stanton family, thus clearing them of any crimes on her end, which, compared to merely supposed treaspassing on a person's property, was the real crime Aaron had done. And in exchange, as Wentworth had put it, Selena's skeletons would not be put on full display by him for the general public. That threat was simple enough to understand. What Selena wasn't sure about was how the hell Wentworth had gotten so much information on her.

It wasn't just the fact that she was a recovering alcoholic. That would have been easy to find out. But he had some information on every aspect of her life. Her time in Nome, her failed engagement to Ryan Scythe, even things like the raid her, Jean Black, Zoe Evers, Shilo Valiant, Marina Trent and a few others made on the hospital to obtain Selena's frozen embryos from the grasp of Dr. Paracelsus and her step-mother years ago. It was frightening that some board member had such knowledge about Selena's secrets - but what was more frightening to the Snow Queen was that he seemed to have no idea what half of it meant. He didn't know why Deanna had disappeared for months in Germany or that she had gotten pregnant up there. He didn't care to know - the man was simply pleased that he was in the possession of something that gave him power over Selena - so who cares what it was?

Just a pawn... came the quiet thought in the back of Selena's mind.

The sniffles that came from her daughter, as well as the child clinging to her mother tightly, brought the Snow Queen back to reality. "I...I didn't sign the papers." she whispered to the child, who did not move, except to raise her head. Carefully, keeping her daughter within her arms, Selena freed her arm holding the papers to hold them to her daughter. "Go ahead." She whispered as Elsianna gazed at them. At her mother's allowance, trembling, scarred, and unsure hands took the papers into them. It was difficult - Elsianna still needing more time of physical therapy to regain full mobility with her hands, but for simple tasks like holding an object, it was doable, especially with Selena there, helping her by guiding her hands. Carefully, but clumsily, the pair worked together, turning the pages of the vile contract Wentworth had shoved into Selena's hands yesterday until they had come across the last page, where the signatures were supposed to be.

Except there were no signatures.

"What happened today was my fault." Selena whispered to Elsianna. "Wentworth came here thinking he had us beat because I didn't...I didn't..."

She had difficulty explaining herself in this regard to her daughter. How could she explain that she had wanted to talk to Deanna about it first? That she wanted time to think about things before she had done something rash. She had always been a bit of a hothead when pushed too far, the Alaskan Dragon coming out to play. And usually, that had been for the best - giving things time so cooler heads could prevail.

But then she had reunited with Regan Street. Regained her sister in the world of SCW. And hearing her story - her side - of all the things that had happened to her regarding them, Platinum, even people like Datura and David Helms, Regan's daughter Jennifer - there was no denying that the hotheaded nature of the Hellcat put that of the Alaskan Dragon to shame. And often times would blow up in Regan's face. 

But other times... Couldn't argue with the results... Selena thought. And looking back, she wished she had followed her sister's example, struck first, struck hard, but more than that, use that 'killer instinct' Regan had - the killer instinct that Selena had strived to find in Nome, Alaska, back in January - to finish the job on Wentworth Stanton, telling him to 'go to hell' and never giving him a second of thinking he had 'the advantage' over Selena and her family.

Selena had no idea how she could explain all of that to her daughter.

"You didn't what, mommy?" the sad face of her daughter looked up at her, her hands, along with Selena's holding the papers in their hands.
"I... I didn't do my best as your mother." Selena admitted. "I wanted time to think of a way to deal with the Stanton's that wouldn't involve any more pain or problems or...anything for us. You have to understand, Elsianna. There is no one more important that you, your mom, and your brother and sister-"
"What about..."
"Yes! Yes!" Selena sighed. "Oberon too! But when Aaron's father gave me those papers, it was like... It was like..."

Come on... pressed her mind. You can tell her...

"It was like being cursed." Selena explained. "Like he had put a spell on me. And I wanted time to find a solution - a cure."
"What was it called?" Elsianna asked.
"It was called..." Selena thought about it. "Fear."

The child was taken aback. "You were afraid?"
"Very much so, snowflake. You know as well as I do that the world doesn't always see things the way we do. They don't always accept us when we do things, even if they are good things. Some people judge us, hurt us..." She gave her daughter's scarred hands the gentlest of squeezes. "And I was afraid that Wentworth was going to hurt you, Deanna, Amiliah, David and even Oberon with knowing out secrets. So I wanted to talk to your mom about it first before I lashed out at him... I was very wrong to do that. Because I gave him the chance for his son to hurt you more and I am beyond sorry for that." She kissed her daughter's crown gently.

The two, daughter and mother, sat like that for a while until Elsianna spoke. "What do we do now?" Elsianna asked, her eyes on the contract in her hands. 

The Snow Queen took a deep breath and exhaled before gently taking her daughter's hands onto the paper in a certain way. "We do this." She said, before moving her hands so that Elsianna and her ripped the contract in two. "And we do this." She moved her daughter's hands so they could rip the pieces in fours! "And this!" Eights! "And this!" Sixteens. On they went until the contract - the 'get out of jail' card of Wentworth's - was nothing more scraps of paper in their hands. "And then we do this."

With a sweep of her hands, Selena threw the pieces into the air above them, the shards of paper falling upon them like...

"Snow in April!" Elsianna exclaimed, huddling close to her mother, her fear abated for the time being. The Snow Queen hugged her daughter tightly for what felt like a solid fifteen minutes until a voice was heard coming from the halls.

"Selena?! Elsianna?!"

It wasn't hard for Selena to recognize the voice. Only one person could make her heart lift and skip a beat every time she heard it. "We're in here, Deanna!" She called out. As carefully as possible, Selena gathered Elsianna fully into her arms and got to her feet, carrying her daughter up and out of the stall. "In the bathroom." She called out just as Deanna all but exploded onto the scene. The redhead's face was stunned, panicked, but upon seeing Selena holding their daughter, relief washed over her.

"Gods...." She sighed in relief. "Bradley called me - said there was an incident and..."

She stopped as soon as the doors outside swung open. Immediately, said principal, Mr. Bradley, rushed onto the scene. "It's okay!" Deanna called out! "Found them."
"Good." Bradley shook his head as he joined the pair, but when Deanna turned again, she saw that the principal had been followed by...

"Keep him away!" Ordered Deanna just as Selena walked out of the bathroom, holding Elsianna. Her eyes followed her wife's glare to where Bradley stood, immediately seeming the damn grinning face of Wentworth Stanton.

"I told you to leave!" Bradley ordered Wentworth, stopping a few feet from the Frosts. Elsianna tucked closer to her mommy's form as she saw the father of her attacker.
"I shall - once I am given what I am owed." Wentworth stated, his eyes coldly on Selena.

A coldness that was met by the damn Queen of it. Carefully, she placed Elsianna into Deanna's waiting arms. "Take her home." Selena ordered. "I'll take the other car and meet you there."

Deanna nodded, quickly disappearing from sight as she went back up the stairs. That being done, Selena quickly gathered her coat and Elsianna's gloves that littered the floor amongst the shards of paper. Throwing her coat back on outside the bathroom, she eyed the suited Stanton. "You want your contract back?" She asked.

No more hesitating...be the best you can be... Attack first! Finish the job!

"You can pick up the damn pieces off the floor in there." She gestured towards the bathroom. "Consider this YOUR warning. I see your son near my daughter again... You'll be the one signing a contract... And trust me... You won't like it."

She turned and left the men there, Bradley yelling at Wentworth as she exited the school, the only place she wanted to be now was with her family in her home...



___________________________________

The camera opens up to the interior of the KeyArena in Seattle, Washington, the site for tonight's first SCW pay-per-view under the new regime of Sasha D., Tabula Rasa. Aside from the tech crew moving around in the rafters and aisles and back areas, assembling the ramps and tech, there is only one other person within the area, and she sits in the middle of the already assembled wrestling ring – the place she has recently referred to as 'her second home'. And, indeed, amidst the arctic blue and white lights that illuminate the ring, the platinum-blonde seems the most comfortable as she sits in the middle. Her hair is tied in its iconic braid and, rather than wearing the wrestling attire that she will soon don in the battle for the United States Championship, she wears a leather jacket, black t-shirt with snowflakes along the right side, and blue jeans.

Still, no one can deny that, even in such casual clothes, that before them is the “Face of SCW” and Snow Queen, Selena Frost. Right in front of her, and taking up much of her focus, however, is the gold-plated, leather-belted United States Championship.

Tilting her head this way and that, Selena continues to regard the title she is set to defend tonight against the Mad Hatter of SCW, Giovanni Aries.

Tabula Rasa...

The words seem  to flow gently from Selena's lips, but they sound foreign to her, as if they are words she would not normally say in any form of conversation. Rolling her tongue against the inside of her cheeks, she tries the set of words again. Tabula Rasa... TabuLA Rasa... TABula Rasa...

The different tone, inflections, and stresses on different parts of the words is tried by the Snow Queen as she says the pay-per-view's name a few more times before gently shrugging her shoulders to lift her head to gaze into the camera – into the audience that is watching.

You know, I have to admit, this is one of the reasons why I am glad my place is here, in the ring, and not back there with the management and creative. Because, well, I have to tell you, when I heard this name – this event's name, I... she shakes her head and shrugs, unable to immediately find the right words. I really thought that someone had accidentally let their cat or hamster run across the keyboard while they were typing emails for “name selections”. I mean... okay, I don't pretend that I am the most intelligent person in this federation or within the SCW Universe. In fact, I'll go as far as to say that I've... she shrugs in good nature, a smile gracing her lips. I've lost quite a few matches and titles by being outsmarted or just being fooled. 

I mean, let's go back to when I thought that I was going to face Bree Lancaster in a match with 'no interference'. It was the last match I had of 2018 – Bree had even guaranteed me that no one would get involved in her promo. So, yeah, I thought 'good! Finally, we can have an answer of 'who is better'...

And I got fooled. You all saw it, Scott Burnside interfered, yadda yadda – last time I ever believed the words coming from Bree's lips. But the point is, I don't consider myself the smartest person amongst such people like Kennedy Street, Regan Street, and Sasha D....

Or as Giovanni likes to call us – 'the golden circle'. The Snow Queen rolls her eyes at that. You know, I think I'll start with that, Gio. Do you have any idea how moronic you sound at this point? I mean, you're not at levels of “I LET SELENA FROST BEAT ME” of Bree Lancaster – but you are pretty damn close. And I'll admit, you got me a bit riled up on Twitter by continuously twisting my words and the words of other people to try and get some heat and some attention.

But, and I need to thank Sasha for this, all that was needed to deal with that was to step back and look at things objectively. I mean, here you are, declaring such things as 'favourites' and what has happened?

Selena holds up her hand to count her examples: Bree Lancaster and Andrew Raynes – getting another crack at the tag titles after being, let's say controversially denied them two weeks ago. Not good enough? How about Aaron Blackbourne being given the adreanline title shot he earned how long ago? Solved that pretty quick, right? Not good enough? Alright, how about names like Tommy Valentine? Kandis? Even the woman that helped betray SCW by siding with Syren and Katya to screw everyone out of that World title match between Syren and Sienna Swann? What do those names have in common, Gio? All given title opportunities since Sasha took over.

How can that be bad, Gio? People that many would not even consider – given their chance at something amazing! Tommy – thrust into the United States title picture! Kandis? Taking on Regan Street! Marie Jones? She JUST became the SCW Television Champion! And then there's you...

Wait... Selena holds up her hand. I forgot that you don't count in your mind because “you don't want the title”. Believe me, I will certainly be addressing that shortly. But if all of THAT isn't enough for you, Giovanni, just look at the main-event of this show.

Owen Cruze vs. Sienna Swann for the world championship. Owen Cruze, the man you said we were all “holding back” is receiving the main-event at Sasha's first pay-per-view. Now, maybe that doesn't mean anything to you, Giovanni other than more cannon fodder for your 'buzzwords' on Twitter – gods know that's all you're using Owen for- but to me? It's far more than that.

You see, going back to the name of this event: Tabula Rasa – yeah, I had no idea where that idea came from. I mean, names like 'Flawless', 'Broken Beliefs', 'Hazardous Envy' – I got. I knew where the inspiration came from. But 'Tabula Rasa'? No clue... the United States Champion shrugs. So... I went to the internet. And lo and behold, I found two meanings behind that name. Selena holds up two fingers.

First was the literal meaning: a Latin phrase for 'clean slate' and the other was a philosophical theory of the human mind and personality favouring the notion of 'nurture' over 'nature'. Yes, that last part sounded very academic, but still, the more I read, the more I realized what was being chosen here... and how perfect this name is not only for the event... but for you, me, this title- she gestures towards the title. SCW in general...

Because this, tonight – this truly is SCW's 'clean slate'. Whether you love or hate what Mr. Dracheywch did with this company for the past fifteen plus years, it really doesn't matter anymore does it? Don't get me wrong, I respect the hell out of O. D. and thank him for all he gave me, SCW and the SCW Universe. None of us would be here without him – not even you, Giovanni Aries. You scowl and complain about him and his family, but you seem to have no problem cashing in those SCW checks and spending that money SCW pays you for... but I digress, it's been made clear since Retribution that O. D. is NOT in charge anymore. He is not the one running the show.

This... rubbing her legs as she sits cross-legged, Selena casts her gaze up to the ceiling, taking in the sight of the arena space. This is new SCW – everything you loved or hated about the old SCW? Wiped clean. New boss, new possibilities. And tonight? Sasha's first pay-per-view, the whole world will be watching to see just what she is going to do with this 'clean slate'. 

And she chose to trust Owen Cruze to set the standard of what to expect in 'pay-per-view main-events'. a bright smile comes across Selena's face. I mean, here you are, declaring that Owen is being 'denied' and she gives him, quite easily, the greatest honour and responsibility he could get. You see, Gio, after Regan battles Kandis? After Bree and Andrew get their tag shot against Redemption, and hopefully get their rears handed to them? After I turn your head into a kicking-bag? Owen Cruze will close out the night. Owen Cruze will end the pay-per-view.

In short, Giovanni... Owen Cruze will be setting the last impression of what is the new era of 'supreme wrestling' that Sasha believes in. That I believe in.

With a smile, Selena pushes herself to her feet, collecting the United States title and placing it over her shoulder, her favourite way to hold a title.

But that is something Owen is going to talk about soon, I am sure – Sienna as well. Me? Well, I am set to defend this beautiful championship for the second time this month against you, Giovanni. And maybe some would think that this match came about because you pinned me a few weeks ago during our tag-team match, thus earning your shot – yes, I did say that right, Gio. You did earn your shot – still, I'd like to think that this goes way further than that. 

See... You and me, Gio? Not so easy to simply stick to the 'clean slate' translation of 'Tabula Rasa', is it? Not so easy to just erase the ledger of our history. Especially when you're sticking to the same old lines you spewed at me last August – seeing me as a 'top general' of 'Lizard Kingdom'? Yes, I remember those words. You spewed them before you attacked a bunch of board members as they cowered in the ring, remember? Non-wrestlers. Innocent people like Sasha and you put your hands on them. 

And now, here we are, and you're calling me a 'top general' and supporting the viscous assault of a fifty-some man who was just trying to exit with some dignity. Selena's frame stiffens a little – the past seeming to repeat itself where she and Giovanni is concerned.

And in that... I blame myself. she states. On Twitter, Giovanni, you twisted the words of Kennedy Street, accusing me of not having that 'killer instinct' needed to 'finish the job'. Owen Cruze even said it, albeit with more respect than you. You said that, when I'm not fighting someone I hate or someone that is threatening someone or something I care deeply about – I lose my edge.

Translation? I didn't have an edge.

And last August? Apocalypse? I beat you as a wrestler. That's all I wanted to do. I wanted to give you want you wanted – a match with me – just to get you to stop attacking innocent people. Just to get you to stop with endangering innocent non-wrestlers. And I gave you my all, Giovanni... and I won... but I didn't really, did I?

Selena turns her head to place the title on the top turnbuckle near her before turning to gaze back into the camera. Because it shouldn't have been you on top of that platform, jumping off to try and end me. It should have been the other way around...

The Snow Queen takes a deep breath. Not in me trying to end you like that, Gio. But I see now that I did not bring the 'killer instinct' you claim I don't have. I didn't beat reality into your head. I just beat you in a pinfall. And while you got put on the shelf and I thought, back in November/December that you HAD learned from it, I see now that it wasn't nearly enough.

Selena shakes her head.

I'm not making that mistake again, Giovanni. Unlike you, I've learned from my mistakes. Unlike you, I've evolved since last time – rather than stick with the same lines and repeated schtick that you do. The marquee may say “Selena Frost vs. Giovanni Aries – United States Title Match” and it might imply that it's a 'standard wrestling match', but I am not going to believe that for a single second. Not when it's you.

Because, while I may not be the smartest person in the SCW Universe, Gio, there are some things I do know. Some things I do recognize. One thing? Fear. I know fear when I see it. I've lived most of my life with some form of fear gripping me. I've lost battles to it and I've won others. But here in SCW? I never had to feel it. I never felt the true, paralyzing fear that grips you and causes you to just freeze...

Until I met you.

Taking a deep breath through her nose, Selena rolls her shoulders back as she wraps her arms around her as she closes her eyes. You're a talented wrestler, Gio. No one will deny that. You're dangerous in the ring and can easily turn loss into victory if allowed. But after we fought? And I thought it was over? Only for you... Selena shudders. To drag me to that platform – you shouted, I'll never forget it-

DIE, LIZARD KING! the sound, echoing from the PA throughout the arena causes Selena's frame to stiffen more so, Giovanni's final words on that fateful night slowly fading back to silence as Selena opens her eyes.

My whole career, I've had people promise that they'll 'kill me', like Rachel Foxx and Matt Auclair. I've had women like Regan Street and Trinity Street absolutely destroy me with weaponry. I've been cut, crushed, busted, fractured, bruised and thrown off platforms...

But that night? As I opened my eyes and saw you falling from the skies towards me, ready to crush me... I won't lie, it was instinct that pulled me out of there just before you landed... The good grace of the gods and nothing more that saved me, Giovanni. 

And as I lay there, seeing the sight of your crash – I don't care if it was you or 'Jules' calling the shot – you have no idea what fear truly gripped at me. Because this wasn't 'putting me on the shelf'. This wasn't you just trying to send a message to the D.. I could see it in your eyes – something I hadn't seen in any other superstar I've faced in five years.

You wanted to kill me. You literally meant it when you said, 'die'...

Selena takes a deep breath before beginning to pace around the ring.

It was in your eyes, Giovanni. That look. A look I never forgot. Even now, months and months later, I can recall it with ease...

Which is why I recognized it when you came to me after my title defence against Tommy Valentine.

Selena tilts her head. Do you remember what you said to me, Gio? In that hallway at the Smoothie King Center? Well, let me remind you. You said 'The Wonderland only will accept violence if people don't respond to other means.”

I saw it then. In your eyes. That desperation. That obsession. That inability to know when one has gone 'too far'. And do you know what has echoed in my head the most since then, Giovanni? The 'other means'. You hurting me with your punches and kicks? Hurting me as wrestlers hurt other wrestlers? That never scared me. That doesn't scare me now. Hell, I look forward to it – as a competitor? You're still the last guy that won the Taking Hold of the Flame Battle Royale. You're still the guy that main-evented last year's Rise to Greatness. So, that alone is enough to make me want to defeat you and retain this championship. 

But when you realized that you couldn't beat me? That was when you employed 'other means' to take me down.

Selena shakes her head as she stops pacing. And suddenly, as I thought about it more and more, a lot of things started to make more sense. You talk to Konrad Raab, trying to get him to embrace his “Black Ice” persona – same night? Black Ice is let loose and hurts someone who didn't deserve it! Last Breakdown? Someone puts that Black Ice mask in Konrad's dressing room. 

James Evans... we all saw him snap – and his regret for it. A private matter – HIS privacy – shattered because he had to admit, on television, that he needed to check and count his pills. I saw the segment, Gio. I saw the fear in his eyes...fear of losing something precious to him. It was the same look I had back at Apocalypse. For me, it was fear of losing my life – for James? It was fear of losing his very identity.

And I thought... The Snow Queen flicks her braid back with a jerk of her head. What if it wasn't an accident? What if, like with Konrad, someone was screwing with innocent, good people? Someone was trying to break them down and release the demons they had fought like hell to control because they valued and loved this sport – valued and loved SCW. Who the hell would want to release that kind of pain and ruination of lives just to burn SCW to the ground, and who would savagely have Mr. D. attacked... thus keeping Sasha, at least, semi-distracted to allow all these things to come to pass?

Turning her gaze back to the camera, Selena's sapphire eyes narrow, her voice deadpan. Who would employ such 'other means'?

A moment of cold silence falls within the KeyArena, the United States Champion not flinching from her position.

There is a notion that we are not born with 'goodness' or 'evilness' inside of us. Rather, these tendencies – these beliefs – are carved into us as we grow. As we take on new experiences. Things happen that shift our mentalities, mold our personalities... change us...

Do you know what such a notion is called, Giovanni? 

Selena's gaze darkens even moreso. Tabula Rasa...

You think I don't know anything, Gio? That I am blinded by my greed for materialistic things like that championship? she points to the title as it sits on the turnbuckle. No, Gio, I would be blind if I didn't see the obvious signs I just mentioned. If I didn't see what you were really doing – what you really are.

You, Giovanni Aries, are no 'savior'. You're no saint, or liberator, or freedom-fighter. What you are is a damn cancer! A cancer using fear and manipulation and 'other means' to twist people into things they are not. Transform them into people they are not! You want to unleash Black Ice upon SCW? You want James to regress back to Abel. You want Damien Angel to burn this place to the ground. You want Owen Cruze to hate this place just like you do!

And why? Because without your army? Without those kind of demons feeding you? You, Giovanni, are exposed.

The platinum-blonde crosses her arms. See, in the beginning, foolish as I was and can be, I bought into the whole “Wonderland” thing. I thought it was fun little gimmick, entertained the audience and you backed it up in the ring. And as it gained momentum, I thought it was going to be 'the next big thing'. 

But then you faced Kennedy Street and lost on the grandest stage, in front of the world. For someone like me, I don't see the shame of that. Kennedy is one of the best – if not the best in SCW right now. Losing to her is no moral defeat. To be mentioned in the same match – the same breath – as her? I'd take it as an honor and strive to be better so next time, I would be ready.

And last July, Gio? I thought you would do the same. That the Wonderland would do the same. Adapt, grow, evolve. But you didn't. Instead, you went the same route the Brees and Syrens and Siennas went. You whined, cried and blamed someone else. You attacked innocent people and you picked Mr. D. as your “Lizard King”, as if to validate all your choices and rationalize your wrong-doings. 

Fast forward to now and where are you, Gio? Where is your Wonderland? Did it get you the world title? No.
Were you able to actually change SCW? No. 
Did you do ANYTHING that you promised to do? No!

You like to rule with fear? Mold people into 'your people' by fear, Gio? Well, let me shine that light on you! Selena points at the camera. Your 'Wonderland' has been one big failure! You failed to take the world title! You failed to take down Mr. D.! You failed to take me down! You failed to destroy me! And, most recently, you failed to take over SCW at Retribution, despite having your pick of allies!

The 'Wonderland', Gio? The schtick you used to get ahead in your first year or so here? It's lost its wonder and now is exposed for what it truly is. A colossal failure and a mountain of lies used to protect and rationalize your sinister actions – your method to ruin people's lives because that's really all you want to do, Mad Matter! You want ruination. You want chaos. You want everyone believing and obeying you, least you employ your “other methods”.

Slowly, Selena shakes her head. No. I say, 'no' to that, Aries. I say that SCW did not survive a D. family war and the vultures of Beauty Network just to be dragged back by your poison! SCW was not just given a true blessing of 'hope' for its future just to have it taken by you! People like James? Marie? Konrad? They deserve the chance at a 'clean slate', not to be trapped in the past by your machinations!

So, whether you want this match – or that title over there – is no longer relevant to me. August Selena would have just shrugged at that to, but she would just have beat you and then looked for another challenger – someone that WANTS to be the United States Champion. Someone that would WANT to beat her as a wrestler and nothing more.

But your victims aren't the only people changed from their experienced. Affected by Tabula Rasa.

Slowly, Selena looks down at her arms and hands, as if she can see something within them that no one else can see.

I do not fear you anymore, Giovanni. Not even your 'other means'. I fear failing SCW. I fear failing those people like James and Konrad and allowing you to continue to manipulate them! I fear failing other people that you may hurt and ruin and influence because I 'let you go' like I did at Apocalypse.

But I have changed, Gio. And you don't have to worry about my 'killer instinct', I can assure you of that. Because something much colder runs in these veins. And you? The supposed puppet master? The cancer – the monster?

A smile breaks across Selena's face. You have become a being that I am all too familiar in dealing with. Ask Bree. Ask Syren. Ask Ravyn. Ask Katya.

I am not a general, Giovanni. I'm a Snow Queen. I'm the Face of SCW. And I am the protector of the True-Believers, their beliefs and what SCW needs to stand for: Supreme Wrestling.

And if you think you can take that, along with the United States Championship, and ruin it like you've tried with Konrad and James? Selena's eyes bore into the camera, leaning a little closer to it. Then it truly WILL BE over my dead body!

Tonight, it will be your turn that experiences Tabula Rasa, Gio. Because this experience is going to change you. Because I'm not going to be content just 'pining you and beating you' like last time you and I fought one-on-one. I'm not going to settle for a simple 'wrestler's victory'. No, Giovanni, here in Seattle, I will not stop our match until I have cut each and every string you have, puppet master! I will not stop until I beat the poison out of you and out of SCW for good! I will not stop until SCW is cut free of the cancer that is your machinations and truly...truly... has that 'clean slate'!

Selena leans back, her arms still crossed over her chest. Embrace it, Giovanni... because I'll be doing the cutting with a very sharp Glass Shard! Whether you 'want it' or not...

Believe it, Gio! Because... Selena looks around the empty arena, which will soon be filled with the masses calling for the head of the Mad Hatter. A prayer that Selena is prepared to answer with all she has. Because We Are SCW.

The camera fades on the Face of SCW, her words echoing as it goes to black.