06-11-2021, 03:59 PM
Send in the Clown
Chapter 8: Assuming Responsibility…
I didn’t end up moving from the chair for another hour… and then another hour after that. Even as my joints got stiff and my back started to ache again. I just downed another pair of advil tablets. Aside from that, my eyes just kept looking at the form in front of me. Sometimes, I was able to read it and comprehend what it was saying – what it was indicating with its written words. Other times, I couldn’t.
And while I wasn’t smelling toast or anything, it still seemed inconceivable to me.
Had I really fucked things up that badly? I mean, this was a rough patch Marina and I were dealing, but compared to her getting kidnapped and tortured, me being hunted by… three…four… no, it was five – Five murderers over the span of six years, not to mention that “we don’t talk about it” era of her being the empress and all that… this was nothing compared to those!
Yet, she… this form with her name… and my name…
I looked it over again. Was this simply the straw that broke the camel’s back? After being by my side through everything else, was she just tired of me hiding things from her? Of rushing into problems and danger? Sick of seeing me ‘test my luck’ against people that were just stronger or faster or smarter than me?
And what about Memphis? What would this mean? She was, by far, a better parent than I was, and, of course, I wouldn’t deny them financial support, but if he stayed with her, would Marina let me visit him-
This was my line of thinking as time ticked by, and I’m not ashamed to tell you that I cried a few times in those hours, holding my head against the cool wood and leather on the desk, letting my tears leave little puddles on the surfaces.
I’m not going to apologize for this sounding like other stories you may have heard at this point. Truth is, I didn’t care at that moment, just as I don’t care now. I didn’t care that other people I knew in my life, in the neighbourhood and at work had come out of divorces, maybe a little worse for the wear, but had recovered and gone back to happy lives. I didn’t care that I could be seen as a little overdramatic in feeling this way. I didn’t care about anything.
Except Marina and how this was happening to me…
Suddenly, as if a switch had been flicked inside my head, I cursed my miserable choices. I cursed myself for lying to her. I cursed myself for being so obsessed with getting back to SCW to the point where I had barely spoken to her about it. I cursed myself for letting things spiral so far out of control because I was too much of a fucking coward – too scared to lose SCW, to lose what little semblance I had the old days when I was ‘The Necro-Merchant’ or ‘The Blood-Stained Joker’. Too scared to admit that so much of this was just me chasing a ghost. A ghost that stopped existing in SCW long before he had actually retired…
I heard the door unlocking and I felt my heart skip a beat. I didn’t know whether to get up or stay put. To lift my head and call out to her or just wait for her to find me.
I didn’t move. Not even as I heard her footsteps drawing closer to the study door. Not even when I saw her shadow stretch across the floor as she stood in the doorway.
“Hey…” I heard her voice. It sounded shaky, unsure.
At this point, I knew I had to move. I had to get this over with. Lifting my head, I saw her standing there, still in her black pant suit. Her hair had, seemingly, been ripped out of its ponytail because she was just running her hand through it, scratching her scalp as she stood there.
“Hey…” was all I could say.
“I’m…” she started but stopped, probably feeling as fucked up as I was feeling. “I’ve been trying to text you.”
“I…” oh I definitely knew. In the beginning, when I first left, I was too angry at myself (and a little at her) to respond rationally… I mean, you saw what I almost did to Ace Marshall for fun right? Picking up and putting him through a table? That would have been a great stress relief. Rather than squeeze the ball, put the sexual-deviant through a table. Same thing, right? No? What if I squeeze his neck WHILE I was putting him through the table? That be closer?
Anyway, for the rest of the week plus, I didn’t answer Marina’s text simply because, as I said in previous chapter, I didn’t have the words. Just like I didn’t have the words now.
“I’m sorry.” I said, my eyes still on the paper in my hand. “I don’t know what to say.”
“Do you…” her voice was a bit more shaky, and I could see her casting her eyes down, looking at her hands in front of her and her feet below her. “Did you read the messages as least?”
I felt my throat lodge, getting stuck and preventing me from saying words. Of course I read her messages! Messages screaming apologies in CAPS, attempted explanation of why she kicked me, explanations of how she scared she had been week after week. Scared because she loved me more than anything. After the first seven or so days, they had just stopped altogether… and now I knew why…
To answer her, I gave a nod of my head. We stood that way for several minutes, my eyes darting between her and the paper in my hand that was just out of her sight, the bold words on the page still easy for me to see.
“Shilo, I’m sorry!” I heard her blurt out, regaining my attention. Her expression was beyond stress, her eyes were moist, leaving me more confused than anything else.
“Why are you sorry?” I asked. “I was the one who lied.”
I laughed at myself when I said that, ignoring the look of confusion on my soulmate’s face.
“You lied.” She said, but I didn’t hear her.
“I was such an idiot.” I continued, looking up at the ceiling, then back at her. “I lied to you, Marina. No! No!” I quickly stopped myself. “Let me start instead by saying that a few days ago, last Breakdown, I got put through a table!”
“What?!” she almost yelled that, her alarm clear and her anxiety spiking. “Why didn’t you- Are you alright?!” She was rushing over around to my side but stopped suddenly when her eyes caught sight of the paper in my hand. Following her gaze, I could see that the bold-printed title of the document was visible to both of us now.
I kept my eyes on her, watching her face change to confusion, then alarm, then something that may have been fear or guilt, I wasn’t sure, her body stiffening straightening as she turned her head towards me.
“Why…why do you have that?” she asked.
“I was looking for advil.” I answered.
“I don’t understand, Shilo…” Her eyes were brimming with unshed tears.
“I don’t either, Marina.” I shook my head…
Thirty-four years old and I can’t recall a time where I felt my heart breaking. Not once. Leaving my father, Spider, for a time in the Kings of Shadow? Nope. Losing my family? Nope. Everything had a reason, a purpose, or maybe I’m just broken or something.
But when you’ve only had one love in all your life and you manage to hold onto it for as long as I have, heartbreak can be something you might be able to avoid. Or at least hold it off for fifteen or so years.
So I don’t know if that was what I was suffering as I stood there, feeling may Solgemia crumbling before my eyes, but if it wasn’t my heart breaking then I had no idea what this was. Still, we just stood there, now with both of our eyes changing from looking at one another to the document in my hand.
“Shilo…” Marina tried, the sound of her taking a few deep breaths filled my ears. Slowly, as if she was afraid she was spook me if I moved too fast – like I was a deer or a squirrel or something – she lowered herself to a kneeling position just in front of me, her hand reaching out to rest on mine (the one on the desk that wasn’t holding the paper). “We can talk about this…” she tried.
“I don’t want to.” I answered, shaking my head. “You’ll get everything you want and need, Marina.” I simply said. “All the support for you and Memphis. I won’t fight you-“
Her mouth hung open in shock and her jaw quivered a little, as if unable to find the words. I expected a smile. Wouldn’t she be happy with that? That I was giving her everything without a fight? Did she want a fight? Did she want to leave things on her terms like I was trying to do in SCW? Or was she simply sad that things had turned out this way?
“Shilo…” the sound that came from a mouth, if I could describe it, was a mix between a cry and plea.
And for some reason my mind flooded back – back to something I hadn’t really thought of in a number of years.
That same expression… I remembered it from when I first opened my eyes in the hospital after the pyro incident. It had taken a few days for the doctors to be confident enough that my eyes were recovering from the flash blindness and burns to be able to see properly. So, when they finally removed that part of the bandages for me to see, Marina’s face – with that same expression – had been the first thing I saw.
Seeing that look again, I felt a few more tears leave my eyes, forcing me to look away, yet remain rooted to the chair.
Everything that had been filling my head for months: my plans for SCW, the capturing of the Adrenaline title, waiting patiently for this month – this pay-per-view, drawing closer and closer to everything I had worked for for almost a year…
Suddenly, it didn’t matter – no, that’s wrong. It mattered, but it mattered so much less compared to Marina being in my life, being with me…
“Can we please…please…” she tried, lifting her head up to look at me, her eyes pleading with mine. “Can we please talk about this. This can’t be how it ends.”
“That…” I was confused by that, but my emotions were easily winning out in this conversation. “That isn’t my decision.” I replied. “I just want you to be happy…”
“Why would you think a divorce would make me happy?” her cry filled my ears.
…
Time out.
“I’m sorry I hit you, Shilo.” Her please continued, quiet whispers that filled the room. “I swear to God that I wish I could undo it! I swear on everything I will never hit you again. But please don’t give up on us- our family-“
“Wha-“ I tried to stammer out a word but I was too confused, my earlier feelings of heartbreak and loss making way to emotions of shock, disbelief and ‘what the fuck – was this all in my head?!’
“I can’t… I don’t want my thoughts on you wrestling be what destroys-“
My hand dropped the paper, flying out to cover her mouth as the document flutter-fell to the floor.
“Alright.” I stated sharply. “Time! Time out! Time right the hell out!”
Her eyes were wide and I could see the fear and confusion in them. Not fear that I would hurt her or anything like that, but fear that –
It was the same fear as mine. Don’t ask me how I knew that. I just did. She genuinely thought she was losing me, as I had thought I was losing her for the last few hours!
“Sorry.” I stated. “Answer me this one question and then you can talk all you want, say all you want to me, okay?”
Slowly, she nodded her head, allowing me to take a deep breath, release my hand from her mouth and then reach down to hold up the dreaded document in front of her.
“Is this yours?” I asked simply.
“Wha- NO!” she declared, a look of disgust on her face. “Why the hell would it be mine?”
“Because I found it in one of your folders from work. And it had our names on it.” I explained.
Before me, I saw Marina process the information, the gears of her mind working like a clock behind her eyes, until refocusing back onto me. “You found that here?”
“Yes.” I explained, reaching over to pull out the black envelope. “I was curious about this black envelope and I opened it and found the document.”
“So…” she hesitated, almost afraid to hope. “You don’t want to divorce me?”
“Divorce you?!” I asked. “I’ve been bawling my eyes out the last two and a half hours because I thought you wanted to divorce me!”
“Why would I want to divorce you?!” she asked.
“Why the hell would I want to divorce you?!” I countered.
Neither of us answered the other – I think because of the overall shock from hearing the other speak the exact opposite of what the other thought.
“I…” Marina was quicker than me – shocker, there – speaking slowly. “Because I hit you…”
“I deserved it.” I countered. “I’m the one that’s fought you and ignored you over SCW.”
“Because I kept pushing you anywhere and focusing on something that wasn’t even there…”
I was about to speak, but hearing that last statement from her caused my jaw to suddenly clench, effectively silencing me for a moment. I fought it – I needed to.
You have to understand guys – you ever have a brush with death? You cross a street too early and a car rushing past just misses you? Or you’re in the car and you swerve out of the way or slam the brakes, thus avoiding a vehicular crash? If you live your life in ANY way like an SCW superstar, then you know exactly what I’m talking about. There isn’t a wrestler in our business that hasn’t had some character-developing drama that involves near death experiences or worse. Hell, look at me!
Changes your perspectives, right? Makes you re-evaluate everything as your life flashes before your eyes or time slows down, right? You contemplate what was ever important to you and what wasn’t? What you wasted your time and life on, etc…
Don’t worry, I didn’t have some kind of epiphany that changed much. You won’t see me in my next promo shouting “WRESTLING ISN’T IMPORTANT TO ME! I DON’T CARE ABOUT WHAT HAPPENS TO ME IN SCW! I’M QUITTING TO FOCUS ON MY STUDIES!”. I’m not a fanfiction writer, guys, come on.
Truth is, even as I was sitting there, Marina standing before me, I found myself still wanting to wrestle – there was something I still needed to do… I still needed to see my plan through to the end…
But I had changed a little. No… I had changed initially when I had gone through that table. Seeing that divorce contract, fearing its implications with mine and Marina’s name there…
Because I hadn’t felt angry at Marina for seeing that paper. I mean, how could I? The idea that she would leave me because of my lies and not wanting to see me get hurt or in a wheelchair because of my own stupidity? It was far more of a credible thought than believing that I wanted to divorce her simply because she was nagging me.
I had been ashamed of myself – as I mentioned to you earlier – I recalled the hours I had just spent mentally cursing myself and every stupid choice I had made.
It wasn’t worth it. I wanted it. I wanted to see it through. But hiding things from Marina? Lying to her? It wasn’t worth it…
Lifting my head to speak, I was surprised to see my soulmate looking at the damned document carefully, scanning it for some reason.
“I recognize this handwriting.” She finally remarked before, she turned to gaze at me. “You need this?” she asked, only a slight shake in her voice, afraid I would say ‘yes’.
“I’ve cried over that for over two hours, Marina.” I replied, hating the document almost as much as a certain elderly fellow. “If I never see it again-“
Her fingers moved before I could finish, crumpling up the accursed document into a small wad of paper before tossing it into the trash and out of sight. That accomplished, much to me relief, she shuffled closer to me. “Scuse…” she whispered, choosing to sit on my lap in the chair, my arms automatically reaching out to wrap around her waist to hold her in place.
I can’t really convey how calming such a simple position, holding her against me, was. I could literally feel my heartbeat start to slow, everything still a little – the adrenaline from terror giving out to be replaced to normalcy. Marina, meanwhile, had reached over to a drawer at her desk (a different one from the one I used to retrieve the advil) and pulled out a black, plastic rolodex.
I didn’t say anything to her – she was sitting in my lap, guys. I talk, she might have moved off me. After what I had been through? No way was I letting that happen.
Her nimble fingers flipped through the small flaps of paper – I could just barely see the different letters she breezed by in her search. Finally, she stopped at the ‘J’ and pulled out one of the papers there.
“Jennings…” she whispered, eyeing the paper before quickly shifting off me.
“Hey!” I managed to squeak out – though, even now, I can’t be certain if she heard me.
She was on the other side of the room, small as it was, digging through her purse, which was on the counter against the wall, to pull out her cellphone. Her head tilted left to right as she, I assume, punched in the phone number that was on the card.
Me? All I could do was watch. Watch and miss her sitting in my lap. To my delight, however, once she was finished typing in the phone number, she was walking back over to me, pressing the phone to her ear and gently sitting herself back on my lap, her free hand caressing my cheek.
Again, as before, I said nothing, merely returning my arms to where they should be around her waist.
After another few seconds, I felt her frame stiffen a little, which indicated to me that someone had picked up the phone on the other end.
“Yes, can I speak to Trish, please.”
There was a pause, again, I assume because of the phone being handed off. The momentary silence lasted only a few minutes…
And then Marina took off.
“Trish, it’s Marina Valiant.”
Wait… she took my last name at work?! How long has that been going on?!
All my life, guys, Marina had always been ‘Marina Trent’ to me. Through Solgemia, through SCW, I can’t really remember any time I heard her use my last name. And truthfully, guys, it never really bothered me. I know some people get hung up on that, but seriously, why would I? It’s not a Jekyll and Hyde complex like James Evans or, god forbid, Jason Zero with seven of them.
Marina was just Marina to me. Regardless of last name.
Now, THAT said… there was something both weird and exhilarating in hearing her use my name like that. Weird because I never heard it before and it sounded strange and exhilarating because… well, holy shit, she’s using my name.
Well, time back in.
“Trish, it’s Marina Valiant.” The brown-haired soulmate of mine stated curtly. “Would you mind telling me why there was a black envelope in my work folders?”
I obviously couldn’t hear what ‘Trish’ was saying, but I could tell Marina was less than thrilled about the situation, her knuckles turning white as she gripped the phone and the armrest on the chair we both sat in.
“I know it was you! I recognize your writing!” she stated, followed by. “You want me to have Remi check the cameras at work? I’ll bet I can find you putting that envelope in my bag earlier this week!”
Now, to avoid you guys having to deal with breaks in the story-telling in this one-sided conversation every time there’s a pause, I’ll just shut up and let Marina do her thing (this all her talking by the way!):
“So exactly why did you feel it necessary to stick your nose in MY private life?”
“The problem is that my HUSBAND found the envelope and assumed the worst!”
“OF COURSE IT’S THE WORST! Do you have any idea the panic you put him through?!”
“I don’t care what your intentions were! You have no right to assume such things or interfere in my private life, do you understand?!”
“No, I am not going to chalk this up to ‘a simple misunderstanding’. I am reporting this to management.”
“Invasion of privacy? Unprofessional conduct? Borderline harassment! Need I go on?!”
“Good idea. Because if ANYTHING like this happens again-“
“No, I’m not threatening you. I’m promising you. If you try anything like this again, I am going to Remi AND I’ll go to Paul. Get it?”
“Hold on a second- there’s someone else you better damn apologize to.”
Okay, back to me, because at that moment, she held the phone to my ear, surprising the hell out of me.
“Uh… hello?” I tried.
“Yes, this is Trish.”
“Yeah, so I gathered. Marina’s been yelling your name.”
“I…” she sounded like she didn’t want to talk to me – big surprise there, I know. “I made a mistake and I am sorry.”
“I mean… you almost gave me a heart attack over it, but-“
“I just heard her upset at work, complaining to Wendy-“
“And you assumed that instantly meant her best option was a divorce?” I asked, somewhat in disbelief. “Are you semi-retarded or something?”
“Excuse me?!”
“No, seriously.” I asked. “I mean mountains out of molehills is one thing, but when the wind hits you, do you assume a tornado is coming? How do you even go to work when it’s raining outside, wouldn’t you want to be in a shelter, preparing for the tsunami?”
In front of me, I could see Marina’s reactions. First, shock/surprise that I had called a co-worker semi-retarded, then covering her mouth with her hand to quiet her giggles of amusement. Was I going a bit far in my assessment of this ‘Trish’ girl? Oh, sure! Absolutely! But I wanted my two and a half hours back! That was time I could have been watching those Lucifer episodes that I spent crying like a baby in the study!
“I…” I heard her stammer.
“Look.” I pressed. “Apology accepted, ‘Trish’. Just do me a favor, okay? On top of staying out of Marina’s and my marriage – cause I am pretty sure you played in part in it – make sure a ) you wear your helmet before you leave the house and b ) don’t operate any heavy machinery or vehicles, okay? We’ve got to think of others, don’t we?”
I didn’t wait for her to reply. I simply hung up on her, terminating the call and toss the cellphone onto the desk. My eyes lingered on it for a few seconds before turning my gaze up to my soulmate, the ‘suited’ Marina cradled in my lap and looking at me.
“That was the most terrifying moment of my life.” I stated.
“Talking to Trish?” she asked.
“No.” I shook my head. “Thinking you wanted a divorce.”
“Wait…” she looked at me in disbelief, like I had said something impossible. “What about when you were in the Tenebrae?”
“Worse.” I shook my head. “Back then. I knew that Spider would find me and that I’d be alright. So the hope was still there. When I saw that paper and our names on it…” I couldn’t finish my statement, so I just simply shook my head.
“Why didn’t you call me?” she asked.
I remember my eyes going wide at that. Not because it was a stupid question, but because the person being asked was stupid.
“I…I honestly didn’t even think about that…”
That’s right, guys! I’m a fucking idiot! Why didn’t I call her? Seriously, how did I miss that?! Was I just in such emotional turmoil that my brain left for a vacation without so much as a “howdy do”? And she hadn’t asked me in a condescending manner, either. She genuinely wanted to know why I hadn’t thought to call her. And I really have no idea why I didn’t. Even now, I have no clue why I didn’t just call her!
“I’m sorry I even looked.” I answered. “You probably would have seen it and-“
“Assumed it was yours and asked you about it.” Marina finished my sentence, surprising me.
“Really?” I asked. “Even if it’s in your pile of work folders?”
“Of course – I was scared too, you know.”
Looking up at her, I slowly pushed her off me to stand up to my full height. “But you did nothing wrong.” I stated. “Everything you’ve done has been… because you love me and Memphis.”
Marina shook her head. “I went too far just to try and prove myself right.”
“Because I was too stupid to say you were!”
The phrase came out of my mouth before I could think it, but Marina caught it, her eyes widening in surprise. For me, it was a relief – compared to the hell I went through.
“You were right.” I sighed. “You were always right. About me… about SCW. About everything…”
My eyes flew in their gaze throughout the room, knowing Marina’s were still on mine.
“Your…” I heard her stammer. “Your knee?”
Slowly, taking a deep breath first to steel my nerves, I bent down to tug at my pant leg, the material moving up easy, with a few adjusting pulls, it was up past my knee. Quickly, mostly through muscle memory, I unlatched the brace before returning to my full height, holding out the support structure to Marina. “I was wearing this when you kicked me.” I confessed.
With slow steps, Marina came around the desk, reaching out to take the metal contraption into her hands. She seemed to study it, pulling on it to test its give or durability or whatever, before looking up at me. “This look bad…”
“It is.” I admitted. “I didn’t ‘trip’ at the restaurant. My knee locks without that brace if I move wrong. It becomes so stiff that I can’t move it for periods of time.”
She remained silent, still holding the brace, as I continued – I won’t hesitate to tell you that the confession poured out of me.
“I wanted to tell you for so long… but I was so scared that you would tell O. and then he’d refuse to let me wrestle.”
“No, he-“
“Marina, he would.” I sighed. “I’m not Kelcey Wallace or Selena Frost or even the people he ‘pretends’ to hate like Syren. Soon as I am gone, he has no use for me. Where was he when I got my face burned? No where! He stripped me of the title the very next week! He pushed Syren to the top and made SCW all about her! Where was he when-“
Sorry guys… I won’t tell you all I said… I still have a promo to film, you know…
Still, I can tell you that, after my tirade, after laying bare every aspect of the plan that had consumed so much of my thoughts ‘SCW-wise’, Marina gave no immediate reply. She merely gazed at the brace, then at me, before gently placing the brace back into my hands.
“I won’t tell anyone.” She stated.
It took a couple ticks of the clock for me to realize what she was truly saying to me – even though she had spoken in clear English.
“Are…really?” I asked.
She nodded, turning to exit the room, making a sharp left to enter our bedroom. Cautiously, I followed her (tell me you wouldn’t be cautious in such a scenario), entering in time to see her changing into her sleep wear, which was now laid out on the bed.
“I don’t like that you lied to me.” She admitted. “But I’ve made mistakes too.”
“You?!” I asked in surprise before the defence mechanism that was my humor kicked in as I held the brace out. “You’re hiding one of these?”
At that point, she was in her underwear and rather than simply say ‘no’, folks, she turned to me, gave a little spin on the spot. “Care to search?”
I should have said ‘yes’. I realize this, but at the time, I was still coming off the emotional roller coaster that was my real-unreal-divorce! Yeah, I got divorced and remarried in the span of 3 hours. Work that into a warped story, Ace Marshall!!!
Marina, meanwhile, had changed out of her underwear and into her long nightgown, which almost covered her feet, before turning to look at me.
“I didn’t want to know what was going on in SCW.” She explained, taking the brace gently from my hands to regard it. “I didn’t want to know. So I shut it out. I didn’t care about why you were doing it, just that I didn’t want you to do it. You were right about that. And that… that was selfish of me.”
“But you did it-“
“My intentions were loving, fine.” Marina interjected, moving to place the brace on the nearby night stand on my side of the bed. “But I didn’t even try to hear you out. To understand why you needed to do all of this… and… while I still don’t agree with you on certain aspects… I know you can’t stop until you see this through.”
“So…” I asked, unsure. “Where does that leave us?”
“We’re married, Shilo.” Marina answered with a shrug. “More than that – at least to me – we’re united in Solgemia.”
“I so much prefer to think of us as that.”
“Either way, it means we talk and we find a… a compromise.”
“Do I… do I have to quit SCW?”
I was on pins and needles at this point. You don’t get it, guys. After the night I had just had, if Marina had asked me right then and there to quit SCW and leave my vendetta behind? I would have. Begrudgingly, of course, but I would have.
“No…” she answered, earning a sigh of relief from me. “But I would like for you to see another doctor about your knee.”
“I…” I didn’t want to tell her that I didn’t believe a doctor would help. The last one had done shit other than get me the brace. “Can you help me find a good one?”
“Yes! Of course!” she replied. “And I…” she took a deep breath. “I will start watching you wrestle again.”
“You…” I was floored by that. I had not expected that to be the quid pro quo she was offering. “You don’t have to do that-“
“Shilo…” Marina stopped me as she drew close, her hands pressed against my chest. “If there’s one thing tonight has taught me is that assuming the worst is far worse than seeing what troubles you.”
I had to think about that, mostly because of the use of worse/worst twice – it just sounded weird. But she was right. Assuming that Marina wanted to divorce me – well, you’ve heard this story, you know what it did to me! Compared to that, telling her about my knee had been easy! In Marina’s case, seeing me wrestle was better than imagining me wrestle and imagining me being hurt.
“Alright.” I nodded. “I’ll call you more often too – to talk about it.”
The former Black Swan gave me a short nod before reaching up to kiss me – and I felt some tears fall from her eyes, though I think they were tears of relief – I was out of tears to cry because they were currently still soaking into the wood of the desk back in the study, possibly attracting the local indoor fly life looking for sustenance.
“I’m so relieved…” I heard her whisper. “Compared to…that.”
“Sort of makes everything we were arguing about seem rather small and mundane in comparison?”
She didn’t answer immediately, simply lifting her head. “Have we become too civilized?” she asked.
“Maybe… but with you it works – I mean you carry it well. I don’t think there’s any hope for me.”
“I don’t believe that.” She smiled. “I believe there’s more out there for you.”
I chuckled at that.
“What?”
“You said the same thing to me years ago. Remember when I first asked you out on a date by the basin underground?”
She regarded me for a moment. “Shilo…” she replied. “You asked me out the day after you kissed me on stage – when we were climbing the ‘metal tree’ just beyond it. You snuck a second kiss and asked me.”
“I…I did?” I asked. “Huh…guess I- no no!” I laughed. “Of course! The metal tree, climbing. You being playful. Sorry! I don’t know why I was thinking it happened by the basin on my 20th birthday.”
“Oh…that was an important day too.” She smiled at me, a knowing smile… a smoldering smile. “Want me to help remember?”
And that’s where I shall leave you, good audience. For more NSFW stuff, Ace Marshall’s got stories somewhere here that I am sure will delight you! As for me… well… I did say I had a second promo to do…
************************************************
The camera opens up to reveal a single spotlight shining over a man dressed in a dark red, double breasted coat. There is a sound of cheers for a moment that come and go, as if an audience in participation is near. As the illuminated gentleman raises his hand and snaps his fingers, however, all goes silent.
Ladies and gents, this is the moment you’ve been waiting for…
With another snap, the crowd sounds become a roar of an audience… that isn’t there. The lights all turn on to reveal an empty circus tent interior! From above and all around are skeletons, some dressed in baggy clown costumes complete with fake noses and wigs, while others are in tights, hanging from wires like trapeze artists. Others still on boards with others are posed ready to ‘throw knives’ at them.
And standing in the middle, still in place, is the World’s Greatest Showman, The Man Who Laughs, Shilo Valiant!
Welcome to my greatest show! he declares, his arms raised.
Oh yes! See, my budget didn’t cover TWO promos of this calibre and, while I ‘respect’ the hell out of Zoe and her ‘fairytale story’ she’s trying to cram down our throats, I’m afraid I had to save my budget for the true guest of honor! The man to whom, none of this would be possible. Oh it’s true, you see! Without this man, I would not be the smiling Man Who Laughs I am today!
So, to our guest of honor, I bid you a special welcome… he gives a flourish of a bow before slowly lifting his head, eyes locked on the camera. O. D.
Returning to his full height, a slow chuckle escapes Shilo. My Liege… My Captain… My ‘Fearless Leader’… I don’t want you to feel shy or guilty towards this. It DID cost me a pretty penny to put all of this on for you – but what is a few dollars between ‘friends’, yes?
Certainly not too much, considering how you fined me not too long ago for the little fun and show I did to spice up the Adrenaline division. Tell me, dear boss of mine, when Sienna and Kelcey went joy-riding in a limo and crashed into a bus… did you fine them? When Giovanni Aries attacked the Board of Directors some time ago, did you fine him? When your titles were torn to pieces, your property destroyed and you, yourself, put through a glass window… did you fine those people responsible?
Ah… Shilo gives a shrug, dusting his hands. No matter! As I said, what is a few dollars between friends? And besides, we have so much more important things to discuss, don’t we?
Grandly, he gestures to the display within the tent. I hope you like what you see, O.. The show that I am about to put on unlike any other! Twisted moreso than a Josh Hudson ‘I’m half evil’ story. More humorous than an Ace Marshall ‘18+ drunken flick’ and far more entertaining than Syren’s sob story as she tries, for the umpteenth time, to change morals just for ‘flavor sake’.
Does SCW not deserve more than just ‘the same’? Does not ‘the road to Rise to Greatness’ deserve more? he shrugs before contemplating his next words.
You know, I have been waiting for this moment – this beautiful moment for some time, O.. The moment where, here in the royale, I take the main event of Rise to Greatness from you. the jester suddenly feigns ignorance.
Oh! Is that not part of the plan, O.? Are you already signing the papers and sending the schedule sheets to the board of directors? Are you already promoting the RTG card to radio stations and TV companies across the world? Have you already decided ‘my place’ in all of this? Where you force me once again to defend the Adrenaline title in a lousy ‘repeat performance’ against Holly Adams? All so your ‘chosen few’ can shine while I am stuck in syndication, it seems?
A smile breaks across Shilo’s features as he slowly shakes his head. Oh no, O.. I’m afraid tonight will not go so according to plan. You have some things to atone for.
Because, I promise, there will be a stream of chaos and problems. The ulcers in your stomach will grow in size as you watch your best laid plans go to waste. And you will have a near heart attack when you see me become the royale winner and the number one contender to the World title.
Why? Shilo’s expression suddenly grows serious, all trace of humor in his face gone. Because you owe me that much.
Let me take you back, D.. Back to three years ago. There I stood, on the stage of the SCW Hall of Fame. Being awarded my status as an icon and legend within SCW – the man that defined entertainment. The crowd roared, they cheered, they thanked me for the years I sacrificed for SCW – for you – and for their entertainment.
That… O.… was meant to be the end of Shilo Valiant. The high note to walk out on. The ending that the most entertaining superstar in SCW history deserved… Valiant’s jaw clenches as he slowly takes a deep breath.
But one day… I received a call from your family…
A phone call begging me, pleading me to come back.
“We’ve got someone we want to push!” I’ll never forget those words. “He could be the next World Champion! He’s the television champion right now! Please, Shilo… come back and help run a program with him! Help push him to that level! Make him entertaining!”
Shilo chuckles bitterly at that. I was skeptical at the time, but then I saw this boy – this Aaron Blackbourne – I thought… he has something. He has something special. He could be ‘the next Shilo Valiant’, which SCW could always benefit from. And despite the nagging voice in my head, I returned to SCW for you – at the request of your family…
And I made Aaron Blackbourne look damn good, didn’t I, O.? I gave him the spotlight of Rise to Greatness that only I could provide. I gave him the fame of fighting ‘the icon and legend Shilo Valiant’. I gave him the tools he needed to defeat the world champion…
And how did you thank me?
All around the walls of the tent, the colors shift and change as a video is splayed across the fabrics. Shilo Valiant is seen on the mat, beaten, at Rise to Greatness 2020 as Aaron Blackbourne turns around and glances at him before turning and walking over to the corner. Aaron steps up and celebrates a bit more. He looks around as the crowd cheers him. He continues to celebrate. The cameras, after several moments, cut away, Blackbourne dropping out of the ring as Shilo remains in the ring as “Hall of Fame” by The Script, featuring will.i.am, then plays.
Ladies and gentlemen, last night, we celebrated the induction of the Class of 2020 of the SCW Hall of Fame. Please, at this moment, join me in celebrating their efforts one more time! the voice of SCW announcer Jason Phillips is heard echoing through the tent. The video flashes to all the entrants of the 2020 Hall of Fame, such as Lucas Knight, Lenne Perez, and Amy Chastaine…
Your SCW Hall of Fame, Class of 2020! Phillips voice is heard once more but the shot is not of the inductees, but of Shilo Valiant looking at them, while leaning on the ropes, mere moments from the gruelling match he just had. The showman slowly just looks down before the footage fades, returning back to the colors of the tent.
Before the camera, Shilo Valiant turns his head, his expression not of amusement or entertainment, but of pure hatred.
So… that was my grand reward for helping you, D.? That was your ‘thanks’ for tainting what was otherwise the perfect end to my career? You may claim it was ‘a technical error’ or it was ‘Sasha’s doing’, but let’s not fool ourselves, O.. There’s only one man with that kind of power – and that man is certainly petty enough to call his obedient daughter and tell her ‘after the match, cut to the Hall of Famers. Don’t give Shilo his moment!’.
Shilo’s hands tighten into fists.
It was quite the joke, O.. You got me to do everything for you. You got me to push the little Aaron Blackbourne to new heights! And, like so many others before me, once I had done what you asked, you cast me aside, didn’t you?
You denied me the Rise to Greatness moment – MY SHOW – that I had earned! The applause from the fans! The cheering of such an amazing match! Such a show-stealing performance! You DENIED me that applause, you son of a bitch! He points a vicious pair of fingers at the camera at that declaration, lowering his hand after a moment.
I could not let that slide. I couldn’t let you or your family have the last laugh on me – on MY career – like that! So… I destroyed your ‘chosen one’…
The camera changes shot to a discarded skeleton in the audience. He has a broken jaw bone and his attire is achingly similar to that of Aaron Blackbourne. I destroyed your ‘star’ inside my own creation. Under the Big Top!
Oh, how that made me smile, O.. Shilo grins. How I savoured that moment, knowing that I had made your star and I had, just as easily, destroyed him. Because where is he? Where is, O.. Not one year removed from me doing your favour and is Aaron your ‘star’ now? Is he your ‘world champion’? Is he even here?
No…
He was never the same after I BROKE him. I showed him and you what I am truly capable of after that Rise to Greatness. I showed you what happens when you take from me… I take from you.
But did your family learn its lesson, O.? Did they learn not to deny me what I am owed?
Shilo shakes his head. Of course they didn’t. When have you EVER learned a lesson in the last near twenty years here in SCW? You, the proverbial God who can’t even control his kids, looking down on all of us ants – there to command as you see fit… there to take from us as you see fit…
Shilo snaps his fingers and a graphic changes across the tent to the graphic of “SCW Presents: Last Laugh”. He says nothing right away.
It was hard for me not take THAT personally, O.. After all, it was only the name of the move I used the last time I had a Rise to Greatness moment – the move I used to defeat Syren at RTG X to become World Champion…
The footage of that night is shown on the tent walls – the masked Shilo Valiant planting Syren with The Last Laugh before standing proudly with Marina Trent by his side, the Necro-Merchant holding the SCW World title.
You couldn’t let me die, could you, O.? You had to get the last laugh on me – remind me how you played me and took from me. Was your family’s pride THAT badly hurt, even though it was justifiable? You had to take one of the greatest memories of my career – of my LIFE – and remind me of how you robbed me of it for the sake of a rookie?!
Shilo’s jaw clenches as he grips his gloved hands. So, once more… you forced my hand…
The tent seems to shift again as Shilo Valiant is seen, choking the life out of Glory Braddock at Last Laugh!
My God! Shilo Valiant! Shilo Valiant s trying to choke out the Adrenaline Champion, Glory Braddock! Adam Sharper’s voice is heard throughout the tent…
I took what I wanted… and one more thing you could not deny me…
The footage changes to Shilo Valiant holding up the Adrenaline title at Retribution at the beginning of the year. The footage fades, leaving the camera back on Shilo as he stands in the middle of the tent.
And I have run roughshod over this entire federation while you – the best you could do -was ‘forget to mention my Supreme Champion status’ and slap fines on me. He grins wickedly. The best you could do…
The Man Who Laughs smiles before shaking his head. You only have yourself to blame for this, O.. You should have just let Shilo Valiant die. First, at the Hall of Fame, or when I had destroyed your precious ‘prodigy’ for my own amusement.
But you couldn’t. You couldn’t let me have the last laugh…and now it’s too late.
But that is precisely what I shall have! The smile becomes a full-blown, sinister grin.
Because, as I told Zoe, captain, I know full well WHY you wasted your time focusing on her, Gavin Taylor, and even giving a workout segment to Katie Steward and yet entirely ignored me. I know why I was not approached to speak of the battle royale or the reward awaiting its winner…
Because you know, as well as I do, who truly deserves it. Who truly deserves that RTG main-event moment… Valiant lifts a hand, holding up to his face in a self-gesture.
And it infuriates you, doesn’t it, O.? It’s the only thing you have over me. The one thing I have yet to truly ‘pay you back for’ – the RTG moment that I am owed! The one you STOLE from me over and over again! lowering his arm, Shilo glares at the camera – at his boss.
So tonight, whether I am fighting 37 people (since 1 and 2 are already ‘picked’) or I am the last one to enter… each person that I throw over the ropes… they will be you.
You will be Katie Steward’s arrogant fail.
You will be Josh Hudson’s nostalgic fail.
You will be the favourite Zoe Sperling as I toss her out of the ring and watch her fail.
Shilo gestures throwing each person mentioned out of the ring – each chosen, brought back, or ‘gifted’ by the boss of SCW.
And finally… when it’s done – and I look around at a ring as ‘empty’ as this tent? The road to Rise to Greatness will truly begin…
MY Rise to Greatness…
MY return to its main-event…
MY return to being the World Champion…
MY Rise to Greatness moment forever returned to me…
Shilo’s grin widens. And you, O.… you will do the best that you can to stop me – just like your puppets and favourites will… but like all of this past year… I will outplay, outsmart and out entertain every one of them… until I have what YOU stole from me… the graphic of “SCW Presents: Rise to Greatness” appears across the tent walls.
And you will look into the eyes of all 39 other people – the eyes of Zoe, your secret favourite – and you will know the greatest joke of all…
That you, the great O. D., are to blame for it all.
The showman shrugs his shoulders, almost sadly.
You should have let me die, D..
Instead, you will make me, just as you did almost a year ago…
You will make me the royale winner…
Make me the number one contender…
Make me the main event at Rise to Greatness…
And, trust me, O. D.… you will… make me laugh…
You OWE me that much!
With a snap of his fingers, Shilo sends the entirety of the tent into complete darkness.
Chapter 8: Assuming Responsibility…
I didn’t end up moving from the chair for another hour… and then another hour after that. Even as my joints got stiff and my back started to ache again. I just downed another pair of advil tablets. Aside from that, my eyes just kept looking at the form in front of me. Sometimes, I was able to read it and comprehend what it was saying – what it was indicating with its written words. Other times, I couldn’t.
And while I wasn’t smelling toast or anything, it still seemed inconceivable to me.
Had I really fucked things up that badly? I mean, this was a rough patch Marina and I were dealing, but compared to her getting kidnapped and tortured, me being hunted by… three…four… no, it was five – Five murderers over the span of six years, not to mention that “we don’t talk about it” era of her being the empress and all that… this was nothing compared to those!
Yet, she… this form with her name… and my name…
I looked it over again. Was this simply the straw that broke the camel’s back? After being by my side through everything else, was she just tired of me hiding things from her? Of rushing into problems and danger? Sick of seeing me ‘test my luck’ against people that were just stronger or faster or smarter than me?
And what about Memphis? What would this mean? She was, by far, a better parent than I was, and, of course, I wouldn’t deny them financial support, but if he stayed with her, would Marina let me visit him-
This was my line of thinking as time ticked by, and I’m not ashamed to tell you that I cried a few times in those hours, holding my head against the cool wood and leather on the desk, letting my tears leave little puddles on the surfaces.
I’m not going to apologize for this sounding like other stories you may have heard at this point. Truth is, I didn’t care at that moment, just as I don’t care now. I didn’t care that other people I knew in my life, in the neighbourhood and at work had come out of divorces, maybe a little worse for the wear, but had recovered and gone back to happy lives. I didn’t care that I could be seen as a little overdramatic in feeling this way. I didn’t care about anything.
Except Marina and how this was happening to me…
Suddenly, as if a switch had been flicked inside my head, I cursed my miserable choices. I cursed myself for lying to her. I cursed myself for being so obsessed with getting back to SCW to the point where I had barely spoken to her about it. I cursed myself for letting things spiral so far out of control because I was too much of a fucking coward – too scared to lose SCW, to lose what little semblance I had the old days when I was ‘The Necro-Merchant’ or ‘The Blood-Stained Joker’. Too scared to admit that so much of this was just me chasing a ghost. A ghost that stopped existing in SCW long before he had actually retired…
I heard the door unlocking and I felt my heart skip a beat. I didn’t know whether to get up or stay put. To lift my head and call out to her or just wait for her to find me.
I didn’t move. Not even as I heard her footsteps drawing closer to the study door. Not even when I saw her shadow stretch across the floor as she stood in the doorway.
“Hey…” I heard her voice. It sounded shaky, unsure.
At this point, I knew I had to move. I had to get this over with. Lifting my head, I saw her standing there, still in her black pant suit. Her hair had, seemingly, been ripped out of its ponytail because she was just running her hand through it, scratching her scalp as she stood there.
“Hey…” was all I could say.
“I’m…” she started but stopped, probably feeling as fucked up as I was feeling. “I’ve been trying to text you.”
“I…” oh I definitely knew. In the beginning, when I first left, I was too angry at myself (and a little at her) to respond rationally… I mean, you saw what I almost did to Ace Marshall for fun right? Picking up and putting him through a table? That would have been a great stress relief. Rather than squeeze the ball, put the sexual-deviant through a table. Same thing, right? No? What if I squeeze his neck WHILE I was putting him through the table? That be closer?
Anyway, for the rest of the week plus, I didn’t answer Marina’s text simply because, as I said in previous chapter, I didn’t have the words. Just like I didn’t have the words now.
“I’m sorry.” I said, my eyes still on the paper in my hand. “I don’t know what to say.”
“Do you…” her voice was a bit more shaky, and I could see her casting her eyes down, looking at her hands in front of her and her feet below her. “Did you read the messages as least?”
I felt my throat lodge, getting stuck and preventing me from saying words. Of course I read her messages! Messages screaming apologies in CAPS, attempted explanation of why she kicked me, explanations of how she scared she had been week after week. Scared because she loved me more than anything. After the first seven or so days, they had just stopped altogether… and now I knew why…
To answer her, I gave a nod of my head. We stood that way for several minutes, my eyes darting between her and the paper in my hand that was just out of her sight, the bold words on the page still easy for me to see.
“Shilo, I’m sorry!” I heard her blurt out, regaining my attention. Her expression was beyond stress, her eyes were moist, leaving me more confused than anything else.
“Why are you sorry?” I asked. “I was the one who lied.”
I laughed at myself when I said that, ignoring the look of confusion on my soulmate’s face.
“You lied.” She said, but I didn’t hear her.
“I was such an idiot.” I continued, looking up at the ceiling, then back at her. “I lied to you, Marina. No! No!” I quickly stopped myself. “Let me start instead by saying that a few days ago, last Breakdown, I got put through a table!”
“What?!” she almost yelled that, her alarm clear and her anxiety spiking. “Why didn’t you- Are you alright?!” She was rushing over around to my side but stopped suddenly when her eyes caught sight of the paper in my hand. Following her gaze, I could see that the bold-printed title of the document was visible to both of us now.
I kept my eyes on her, watching her face change to confusion, then alarm, then something that may have been fear or guilt, I wasn’t sure, her body stiffening straightening as she turned her head towards me.
“Why…why do you have that?” she asked.
“I was looking for advil.” I answered.
“I don’t understand, Shilo…” Her eyes were brimming with unshed tears.
“I don’t either, Marina.” I shook my head…
Thirty-four years old and I can’t recall a time where I felt my heart breaking. Not once. Leaving my father, Spider, for a time in the Kings of Shadow? Nope. Losing my family? Nope. Everything had a reason, a purpose, or maybe I’m just broken or something.
But when you’ve only had one love in all your life and you manage to hold onto it for as long as I have, heartbreak can be something you might be able to avoid. Or at least hold it off for fifteen or so years.
So I don’t know if that was what I was suffering as I stood there, feeling may Solgemia crumbling before my eyes, but if it wasn’t my heart breaking then I had no idea what this was. Still, we just stood there, now with both of our eyes changing from looking at one another to the document in my hand.
“Shilo…” Marina tried, the sound of her taking a few deep breaths filled my ears. Slowly, as if she was afraid she was spook me if I moved too fast – like I was a deer or a squirrel or something – she lowered herself to a kneeling position just in front of me, her hand reaching out to rest on mine (the one on the desk that wasn’t holding the paper). “We can talk about this…” she tried.
“I don’t want to.” I answered, shaking my head. “You’ll get everything you want and need, Marina.” I simply said. “All the support for you and Memphis. I won’t fight you-“
Her mouth hung open in shock and her jaw quivered a little, as if unable to find the words. I expected a smile. Wouldn’t she be happy with that? That I was giving her everything without a fight? Did she want a fight? Did she want to leave things on her terms like I was trying to do in SCW? Or was she simply sad that things had turned out this way?
“Shilo…” the sound that came from a mouth, if I could describe it, was a mix between a cry and plea.
And for some reason my mind flooded back – back to something I hadn’t really thought of in a number of years.
That same expression… I remembered it from when I first opened my eyes in the hospital after the pyro incident. It had taken a few days for the doctors to be confident enough that my eyes were recovering from the flash blindness and burns to be able to see properly. So, when they finally removed that part of the bandages for me to see, Marina’s face – with that same expression – had been the first thing I saw.
Seeing that look again, I felt a few more tears leave my eyes, forcing me to look away, yet remain rooted to the chair.
Everything that had been filling my head for months: my plans for SCW, the capturing of the Adrenaline title, waiting patiently for this month – this pay-per-view, drawing closer and closer to everything I had worked for for almost a year…
Suddenly, it didn’t matter – no, that’s wrong. It mattered, but it mattered so much less compared to Marina being in my life, being with me…
“Can we please…please…” she tried, lifting her head up to look at me, her eyes pleading with mine. “Can we please talk about this. This can’t be how it ends.”
“That…” I was confused by that, but my emotions were easily winning out in this conversation. “That isn’t my decision.” I replied. “I just want you to be happy…”
“Why would you think a divorce would make me happy?” her cry filled my ears.
…
Time out.
“I’m sorry I hit you, Shilo.” Her please continued, quiet whispers that filled the room. “I swear to God that I wish I could undo it! I swear on everything I will never hit you again. But please don’t give up on us- our family-“
“Wha-“ I tried to stammer out a word but I was too confused, my earlier feelings of heartbreak and loss making way to emotions of shock, disbelief and ‘what the fuck – was this all in my head?!’
“I can’t… I don’t want my thoughts on you wrestling be what destroys-“
My hand dropped the paper, flying out to cover her mouth as the document flutter-fell to the floor.
“Alright.” I stated sharply. “Time! Time out! Time right the hell out!”
Her eyes were wide and I could see the fear and confusion in them. Not fear that I would hurt her or anything like that, but fear that –
It was the same fear as mine. Don’t ask me how I knew that. I just did. She genuinely thought she was losing me, as I had thought I was losing her for the last few hours!
“Sorry.” I stated. “Answer me this one question and then you can talk all you want, say all you want to me, okay?”
Slowly, she nodded her head, allowing me to take a deep breath, release my hand from her mouth and then reach down to hold up the dreaded document in front of her.
“Is this yours?” I asked simply.
“Wha- NO!” she declared, a look of disgust on her face. “Why the hell would it be mine?”
“Because I found it in one of your folders from work. And it had our names on it.” I explained.
Before me, I saw Marina process the information, the gears of her mind working like a clock behind her eyes, until refocusing back onto me. “You found that here?”
“Yes.” I explained, reaching over to pull out the black envelope. “I was curious about this black envelope and I opened it and found the document.”
“So…” she hesitated, almost afraid to hope. “You don’t want to divorce me?”
“Divorce you?!” I asked. “I’ve been bawling my eyes out the last two and a half hours because I thought you wanted to divorce me!”
“Why would I want to divorce you?!” she asked.
“Why the hell would I want to divorce you?!” I countered.
Neither of us answered the other – I think because of the overall shock from hearing the other speak the exact opposite of what the other thought.
“I…” Marina was quicker than me – shocker, there – speaking slowly. “Because I hit you…”
“I deserved it.” I countered. “I’m the one that’s fought you and ignored you over SCW.”
“Because I kept pushing you anywhere and focusing on something that wasn’t even there…”
I was about to speak, but hearing that last statement from her caused my jaw to suddenly clench, effectively silencing me for a moment. I fought it – I needed to.
You have to understand guys – you ever have a brush with death? You cross a street too early and a car rushing past just misses you? Or you’re in the car and you swerve out of the way or slam the brakes, thus avoiding a vehicular crash? If you live your life in ANY way like an SCW superstar, then you know exactly what I’m talking about. There isn’t a wrestler in our business that hasn’t had some character-developing drama that involves near death experiences or worse. Hell, look at me!
Changes your perspectives, right? Makes you re-evaluate everything as your life flashes before your eyes or time slows down, right? You contemplate what was ever important to you and what wasn’t? What you wasted your time and life on, etc…
Don’t worry, I didn’t have some kind of epiphany that changed much. You won’t see me in my next promo shouting “WRESTLING ISN’T IMPORTANT TO ME! I DON’T CARE ABOUT WHAT HAPPENS TO ME IN SCW! I’M QUITTING TO FOCUS ON MY STUDIES!”. I’m not a fanfiction writer, guys, come on.
Truth is, even as I was sitting there, Marina standing before me, I found myself still wanting to wrestle – there was something I still needed to do… I still needed to see my plan through to the end…
But I had changed a little. No… I had changed initially when I had gone through that table. Seeing that divorce contract, fearing its implications with mine and Marina’s name there…
Because I hadn’t felt angry at Marina for seeing that paper. I mean, how could I? The idea that she would leave me because of my lies and not wanting to see me get hurt or in a wheelchair because of my own stupidity? It was far more of a credible thought than believing that I wanted to divorce her simply because she was nagging me.
I had been ashamed of myself – as I mentioned to you earlier – I recalled the hours I had just spent mentally cursing myself and every stupid choice I had made.
It wasn’t worth it. I wanted it. I wanted to see it through. But hiding things from Marina? Lying to her? It wasn’t worth it…
Lifting my head to speak, I was surprised to see my soulmate looking at the damned document carefully, scanning it for some reason.
“I recognize this handwriting.” She finally remarked before, she turned to gaze at me. “You need this?” she asked, only a slight shake in her voice, afraid I would say ‘yes’.
“I’ve cried over that for over two hours, Marina.” I replied, hating the document almost as much as a certain elderly fellow. “If I never see it again-“
Her fingers moved before I could finish, crumpling up the accursed document into a small wad of paper before tossing it into the trash and out of sight. That accomplished, much to me relief, she shuffled closer to me. “Scuse…” she whispered, choosing to sit on my lap in the chair, my arms automatically reaching out to wrap around her waist to hold her in place.
I can’t really convey how calming such a simple position, holding her against me, was. I could literally feel my heartbeat start to slow, everything still a little – the adrenaline from terror giving out to be replaced to normalcy. Marina, meanwhile, had reached over to a drawer at her desk (a different one from the one I used to retrieve the advil) and pulled out a black, plastic rolodex.
I didn’t say anything to her – she was sitting in my lap, guys. I talk, she might have moved off me. After what I had been through? No way was I letting that happen.
Her nimble fingers flipped through the small flaps of paper – I could just barely see the different letters she breezed by in her search. Finally, she stopped at the ‘J’ and pulled out one of the papers there.
“Jennings…” she whispered, eyeing the paper before quickly shifting off me.
“Hey!” I managed to squeak out – though, even now, I can’t be certain if she heard me.
She was on the other side of the room, small as it was, digging through her purse, which was on the counter against the wall, to pull out her cellphone. Her head tilted left to right as she, I assume, punched in the phone number that was on the card.
Me? All I could do was watch. Watch and miss her sitting in my lap. To my delight, however, once she was finished typing in the phone number, she was walking back over to me, pressing the phone to her ear and gently sitting herself back on my lap, her free hand caressing my cheek.
Again, as before, I said nothing, merely returning my arms to where they should be around her waist.
After another few seconds, I felt her frame stiffen a little, which indicated to me that someone had picked up the phone on the other end.
“Yes, can I speak to Trish, please.”
There was a pause, again, I assume because of the phone being handed off. The momentary silence lasted only a few minutes…
And then Marina took off.
“Trish, it’s Marina Valiant.”
Wait… she took my last name at work?! How long has that been going on?!
All my life, guys, Marina had always been ‘Marina Trent’ to me. Through Solgemia, through SCW, I can’t really remember any time I heard her use my last name. And truthfully, guys, it never really bothered me. I know some people get hung up on that, but seriously, why would I? It’s not a Jekyll and Hyde complex like James Evans or, god forbid, Jason Zero with seven of them.
Marina was just Marina to me. Regardless of last name.
Now, THAT said… there was something both weird and exhilarating in hearing her use my name like that. Weird because I never heard it before and it sounded strange and exhilarating because… well, holy shit, she’s using my name.
Well, time back in.
“Trish, it’s Marina Valiant.” The brown-haired soulmate of mine stated curtly. “Would you mind telling me why there was a black envelope in my work folders?”
I obviously couldn’t hear what ‘Trish’ was saying, but I could tell Marina was less than thrilled about the situation, her knuckles turning white as she gripped the phone and the armrest on the chair we both sat in.
“I know it was you! I recognize your writing!” she stated, followed by. “You want me to have Remi check the cameras at work? I’ll bet I can find you putting that envelope in my bag earlier this week!”
Now, to avoid you guys having to deal with breaks in the story-telling in this one-sided conversation every time there’s a pause, I’ll just shut up and let Marina do her thing (this all her talking by the way!):
“So exactly why did you feel it necessary to stick your nose in MY private life?”
“The problem is that my HUSBAND found the envelope and assumed the worst!”
“OF COURSE IT’S THE WORST! Do you have any idea the panic you put him through?!”
“I don’t care what your intentions were! You have no right to assume such things or interfere in my private life, do you understand?!”
“No, I am not going to chalk this up to ‘a simple misunderstanding’. I am reporting this to management.”
“Invasion of privacy? Unprofessional conduct? Borderline harassment! Need I go on?!”
“Good idea. Because if ANYTHING like this happens again-“
“No, I’m not threatening you. I’m promising you. If you try anything like this again, I am going to Remi AND I’ll go to Paul. Get it?”
“Hold on a second- there’s someone else you better damn apologize to.”
Okay, back to me, because at that moment, she held the phone to my ear, surprising the hell out of me.
“Uh… hello?” I tried.
“Yes, this is Trish.”
“Yeah, so I gathered. Marina’s been yelling your name.”
“I…” she sounded like she didn’t want to talk to me – big surprise there, I know. “I made a mistake and I am sorry.”
“I mean… you almost gave me a heart attack over it, but-“
“I just heard her upset at work, complaining to Wendy-“
“And you assumed that instantly meant her best option was a divorce?” I asked, somewhat in disbelief. “Are you semi-retarded or something?”
“Excuse me?!”
“No, seriously.” I asked. “I mean mountains out of molehills is one thing, but when the wind hits you, do you assume a tornado is coming? How do you even go to work when it’s raining outside, wouldn’t you want to be in a shelter, preparing for the tsunami?”
In front of me, I could see Marina’s reactions. First, shock/surprise that I had called a co-worker semi-retarded, then covering her mouth with her hand to quiet her giggles of amusement. Was I going a bit far in my assessment of this ‘Trish’ girl? Oh, sure! Absolutely! But I wanted my two and a half hours back! That was time I could have been watching those Lucifer episodes that I spent crying like a baby in the study!
“I…” I heard her stammer.
“Look.” I pressed. “Apology accepted, ‘Trish’. Just do me a favor, okay? On top of staying out of Marina’s and my marriage – cause I am pretty sure you played in part in it – make sure a ) you wear your helmet before you leave the house and b ) don’t operate any heavy machinery or vehicles, okay? We’ve got to think of others, don’t we?”
I didn’t wait for her to reply. I simply hung up on her, terminating the call and toss the cellphone onto the desk. My eyes lingered on it for a few seconds before turning my gaze up to my soulmate, the ‘suited’ Marina cradled in my lap and looking at me.
“That was the most terrifying moment of my life.” I stated.
“Talking to Trish?” she asked.
“No.” I shook my head. “Thinking you wanted a divorce.”
“Wait…” she looked at me in disbelief, like I had said something impossible. “What about when you were in the Tenebrae?”
“Worse.” I shook my head. “Back then. I knew that Spider would find me and that I’d be alright. So the hope was still there. When I saw that paper and our names on it…” I couldn’t finish my statement, so I just simply shook my head.
“Why didn’t you call me?” she asked.
I remember my eyes going wide at that. Not because it was a stupid question, but because the person being asked was stupid.
“I…I honestly didn’t even think about that…”
That’s right, guys! I’m a fucking idiot! Why didn’t I call her? Seriously, how did I miss that?! Was I just in such emotional turmoil that my brain left for a vacation without so much as a “howdy do”? And she hadn’t asked me in a condescending manner, either. She genuinely wanted to know why I hadn’t thought to call her. And I really have no idea why I didn’t. Even now, I have no clue why I didn’t just call her!
“I’m sorry I even looked.” I answered. “You probably would have seen it and-“
“Assumed it was yours and asked you about it.” Marina finished my sentence, surprising me.
“Really?” I asked. “Even if it’s in your pile of work folders?”
“Of course – I was scared too, you know.”
Looking up at her, I slowly pushed her off me to stand up to my full height. “But you did nothing wrong.” I stated. “Everything you’ve done has been… because you love me and Memphis.”
Marina shook her head. “I went too far just to try and prove myself right.”
“Because I was too stupid to say you were!”
The phrase came out of my mouth before I could think it, but Marina caught it, her eyes widening in surprise. For me, it was a relief – compared to the hell I went through.
“You were right.” I sighed. “You were always right. About me… about SCW. About everything…”
My eyes flew in their gaze throughout the room, knowing Marina’s were still on mine.
“Your…” I heard her stammer. “Your knee?”
Slowly, taking a deep breath first to steel my nerves, I bent down to tug at my pant leg, the material moving up easy, with a few adjusting pulls, it was up past my knee. Quickly, mostly through muscle memory, I unlatched the brace before returning to my full height, holding out the support structure to Marina. “I was wearing this when you kicked me.” I confessed.
With slow steps, Marina came around the desk, reaching out to take the metal contraption into her hands. She seemed to study it, pulling on it to test its give or durability or whatever, before looking up at me. “This look bad…”
“It is.” I admitted. “I didn’t ‘trip’ at the restaurant. My knee locks without that brace if I move wrong. It becomes so stiff that I can’t move it for periods of time.”
She remained silent, still holding the brace, as I continued – I won’t hesitate to tell you that the confession poured out of me.
“I wanted to tell you for so long… but I was so scared that you would tell O. and then he’d refuse to let me wrestle.”
“No, he-“
“Marina, he would.” I sighed. “I’m not Kelcey Wallace or Selena Frost or even the people he ‘pretends’ to hate like Syren. Soon as I am gone, he has no use for me. Where was he when I got my face burned? No where! He stripped me of the title the very next week! He pushed Syren to the top and made SCW all about her! Where was he when-“
Sorry guys… I won’t tell you all I said… I still have a promo to film, you know…
Still, I can tell you that, after my tirade, after laying bare every aspect of the plan that had consumed so much of my thoughts ‘SCW-wise’, Marina gave no immediate reply. She merely gazed at the brace, then at me, before gently placing the brace back into my hands.
“I won’t tell anyone.” She stated.
It took a couple ticks of the clock for me to realize what she was truly saying to me – even though she had spoken in clear English.
“Are…really?” I asked.
She nodded, turning to exit the room, making a sharp left to enter our bedroom. Cautiously, I followed her (tell me you wouldn’t be cautious in such a scenario), entering in time to see her changing into her sleep wear, which was now laid out on the bed.
“I don’t like that you lied to me.” She admitted. “But I’ve made mistakes too.”
“You?!” I asked in surprise before the defence mechanism that was my humor kicked in as I held the brace out. “You’re hiding one of these?”
At that point, she was in her underwear and rather than simply say ‘no’, folks, she turned to me, gave a little spin on the spot. “Care to search?”
I should have said ‘yes’. I realize this, but at the time, I was still coming off the emotional roller coaster that was my real-unreal-divorce! Yeah, I got divorced and remarried in the span of 3 hours. Work that into a warped story, Ace Marshall!!!
Marina, meanwhile, had changed out of her underwear and into her long nightgown, which almost covered her feet, before turning to look at me.
“I didn’t want to know what was going on in SCW.” She explained, taking the brace gently from my hands to regard it. “I didn’t want to know. So I shut it out. I didn’t care about why you were doing it, just that I didn’t want you to do it. You were right about that. And that… that was selfish of me.”
“But you did it-“
“My intentions were loving, fine.” Marina interjected, moving to place the brace on the nearby night stand on my side of the bed. “But I didn’t even try to hear you out. To understand why you needed to do all of this… and… while I still don’t agree with you on certain aspects… I know you can’t stop until you see this through.”
“So…” I asked, unsure. “Where does that leave us?”
“We’re married, Shilo.” Marina answered with a shrug. “More than that – at least to me – we’re united in Solgemia.”
“I so much prefer to think of us as that.”
“Either way, it means we talk and we find a… a compromise.”
“Do I… do I have to quit SCW?”
I was on pins and needles at this point. You don’t get it, guys. After the night I had just had, if Marina had asked me right then and there to quit SCW and leave my vendetta behind? I would have. Begrudgingly, of course, but I would have.
“No…” she answered, earning a sigh of relief from me. “But I would like for you to see another doctor about your knee.”
“I…” I didn’t want to tell her that I didn’t believe a doctor would help. The last one had done shit other than get me the brace. “Can you help me find a good one?”
“Yes! Of course!” she replied. “And I…” she took a deep breath. “I will start watching you wrestle again.”
“You…” I was floored by that. I had not expected that to be the quid pro quo she was offering. “You don’t have to do that-“
“Shilo…” Marina stopped me as she drew close, her hands pressed against my chest. “If there’s one thing tonight has taught me is that assuming the worst is far worse than seeing what troubles you.”
I had to think about that, mostly because of the use of worse/worst twice – it just sounded weird. But she was right. Assuming that Marina wanted to divorce me – well, you’ve heard this story, you know what it did to me! Compared to that, telling her about my knee had been easy! In Marina’s case, seeing me wrestle was better than imagining me wrestle and imagining me being hurt.
“Alright.” I nodded. “I’ll call you more often too – to talk about it.”
The former Black Swan gave me a short nod before reaching up to kiss me – and I felt some tears fall from her eyes, though I think they were tears of relief – I was out of tears to cry because they were currently still soaking into the wood of the desk back in the study, possibly attracting the local indoor fly life looking for sustenance.
“I’m so relieved…” I heard her whisper. “Compared to…that.”
“Sort of makes everything we were arguing about seem rather small and mundane in comparison?”
She didn’t answer immediately, simply lifting her head. “Have we become too civilized?” she asked.
“Maybe… but with you it works – I mean you carry it well. I don’t think there’s any hope for me.”
“I don’t believe that.” She smiled. “I believe there’s more out there for you.”
I chuckled at that.
“What?”
“You said the same thing to me years ago. Remember when I first asked you out on a date by the basin underground?”
She regarded me for a moment. “Shilo…” she replied. “You asked me out the day after you kissed me on stage – when we were climbing the ‘metal tree’ just beyond it. You snuck a second kiss and asked me.”
“I…I did?” I asked. “Huh…guess I- no no!” I laughed. “Of course! The metal tree, climbing. You being playful. Sorry! I don’t know why I was thinking it happened by the basin on my 20th birthday.”
“Oh…that was an important day too.” She smiled at me, a knowing smile… a smoldering smile. “Want me to help remember?”
And that’s where I shall leave you, good audience. For more NSFW stuff, Ace Marshall’s got stories somewhere here that I am sure will delight you! As for me… well… I did say I had a second promo to do…
************************************************
The camera opens up to reveal a single spotlight shining over a man dressed in a dark red, double breasted coat. There is a sound of cheers for a moment that come and go, as if an audience in participation is near. As the illuminated gentleman raises his hand and snaps his fingers, however, all goes silent.
Ladies and gents, this is the moment you’ve been waiting for…
With another snap, the crowd sounds become a roar of an audience… that isn’t there. The lights all turn on to reveal an empty circus tent interior! From above and all around are skeletons, some dressed in baggy clown costumes complete with fake noses and wigs, while others are in tights, hanging from wires like trapeze artists. Others still on boards with others are posed ready to ‘throw knives’ at them.
And standing in the middle, still in place, is the World’s Greatest Showman, The Man Who Laughs, Shilo Valiant!
Welcome to my greatest show! he declares, his arms raised.
Oh yes! See, my budget didn’t cover TWO promos of this calibre and, while I ‘respect’ the hell out of Zoe and her ‘fairytale story’ she’s trying to cram down our throats, I’m afraid I had to save my budget for the true guest of honor! The man to whom, none of this would be possible. Oh it’s true, you see! Without this man, I would not be the smiling Man Who Laughs I am today!
So, to our guest of honor, I bid you a special welcome… he gives a flourish of a bow before slowly lifting his head, eyes locked on the camera. O. D.
Returning to his full height, a slow chuckle escapes Shilo. My Liege… My Captain… My ‘Fearless Leader’… I don’t want you to feel shy or guilty towards this. It DID cost me a pretty penny to put all of this on for you – but what is a few dollars between ‘friends’, yes?
Certainly not too much, considering how you fined me not too long ago for the little fun and show I did to spice up the Adrenaline division. Tell me, dear boss of mine, when Sienna and Kelcey went joy-riding in a limo and crashed into a bus… did you fine them? When Giovanni Aries attacked the Board of Directors some time ago, did you fine him? When your titles were torn to pieces, your property destroyed and you, yourself, put through a glass window… did you fine those people responsible?
Ah… Shilo gives a shrug, dusting his hands. No matter! As I said, what is a few dollars between friends? And besides, we have so much more important things to discuss, don’t we?
Grandly, he gestures to the display within the tent. I hope you like what you see, O.. The show that I am about to put on unlike any other! Twisted moreso than a Josh Hudson ‘I’m half evil’ story. More humorous than an Ace Marshall ‘18+ drunken flick’ and far more entertaining than Syren’s sob story as she tries, for the umpteenth time, to change morals just for ‘flavor sake’.
Does SCW not deserve more than just ‘the same’? Does not ‘the road to Rise to Greatness’ deserve more? he shrugs before contemplating his next words.
You know, I have been waiting for this moment – this beautiful moment for some time, O.. The moment where, here in the royale, I take the main event of Rise to Greatness from you. the jester suddenly feigns ignorance.
Oh! Is that not part of the plan, O.? Are you already signing the papers and sending the schedule sheets to the board of directors? Are you already promoting the RTG card to radio stations and TV companies across the world? Have you already decided ‘my place’ in all of this? Where you force me once again to defend the Adrenaline title in a lousy ‘repeat performance’ against Holly Adams? All so your ‘chosen few’ can shine while I am stuck in syndication, it seems?
A smile breaks across Shilo’s features as he slowly shakes his head. Oh no, O.. I’m afraid tonight will not go so according to plan. You have some things to atone for.
Because, I promise, there will be a stream of chaos and problems. The ulcers in your stomach will grow in size as you watch your best laid plans go to waste. And you will have a near heart attack when you see me become the royale winner and the number one contender to the World title.
Why? Shilo’s expression suddenly grows serious, all trace of humor in his face gone. Because you owe me that much.
Let me take you back, D.. Back to three years ago. There I stood, on the stage of the SCW Hall of Fame. Being awarded my status as an icon and legend within SCW – the man that defined entertainment. The crowd roared, they cheered, they thanked me for the years I sacrificed for SCW – for you – and for their entertainment.
That… O.… was meant to be the end of Shilo Valiant. The high note to walk out on. The ending that the most entertaining superstar in SCW history deserved… Valiant’s jaw clenches as he slowly takes a deep breath.
But one day… I received a call from your family…
A phone call begging me, pleading me to come back.
“We’ve got someone we want to push!” I’ll never forget those words. “He could be the next World Champion! He’s the television champion right now! Please, Shilo… come back and help run a program with him! Help push him to that level! Make him entertaining!”
Shilo chuckles bitterly at that. I was skeptical at the time, but then I saw this boy – this Aaron Blackbourne – I thought… he has something. He has something special. He could be ‘the next Shilo Valiant’, which SCW could always benefit from. And despite the nagging voice in my head, I returned to SCW for you – at the request of your family…
And I made Aaron Blackbourne look damn good, didn’t I, O.? I gave him the spotlight of Rise to Greatness that only I could provide. I gave him the fame of fighting ‘the icon and legend Shilo Valiant’. I gave him the tools he needed to defeat the world champion…
And how did you thank me?
All around the walls of the tent, the colors shift and change as a video is splayed across the fabrics. Shilo Valiant is seen on the mat, beaten, at Rise to Greatness 2020 as Aaron Blackbourne turns around and glances at him before turning and walking over to the corner. Aaron steps up and celebrates a bit more. He looks around as the crowd cheers him. He continues to celebrate. The cameras, after several moments, cut away, Blackbourne dropping out of the ring as Shilo remains in the ring as “Hall of Fame” by The Script, featuring will.i.am, then plays.
Ladies and gentlemen, last night, we celebrated the induction of the Class of 2020 of the SCW Hall of Fame. Please, at this moment, join me in celebrating their efforts one more time! the voice of SCW announcer Jason Phillips is heard echoing through the tent. The video flashes to all the entrants of the 2020 Hall of Fame, such as Lucas Knight, Lenne Perez, and Amy Chastaine…
Your SCW Hall of Fame, Class of 2020! Phillips voice is heard once more but the shot is not of the inductees, but of Shilo Valiant looking at them, while leaning on the ropes, mere moments from the gruelling match he just had. The showman slowly just looks down before the footage fades, returning back to the colors of the tent.
Before the camera, Shilo Valiant turns his head, his expression not of amusement or entertainment, but of pure hatred.
So… that was my grand reward for helping you, D.? That was your ‘thanks’ for tainting what was otherwise the perfect end to my career? You may claim it was ‘a technical error’ or it was ‘Sasha’s doing’, but let’s not fool ourselves, O.. There’s only one man with that kind of power – and that man is certainly petty enough to call his obedient daughter and tell her ‘after the match, cut to the Hall of Famers. Don’t give Shilo his moment!’.
Shilo’s hands tighten into fists.
It was quite the joke, O.. You got me to do everything for you. You got me to push the little Aaron Blackbourne to new heights! And, like so many others before me, once I had done what you asked, you cast me aside, didn’t you?
You denied me the Rise to Greatness moment – MY SHOW – that I had earned! The applause from the fans! The cheering of such an amazing match! Such a show-stealing performance! You DENIED me that applause, you son of a bitch! He points a vicious pair of fingers at the camera at that declaration, lowering his hand after a moment.
I could not let that slide. I couldn’t let you or your family have the last laugh on me – on MY career – like that! So… I destroyed your ‘chosen one’…
The camera changes shot to a discarded skeleton in the audience. He has a broken jaw bone and his attire is achingly similar to that of Aaron Blackbourne. I destroyed your ‘star’ inside my own creation. Under the Big Top!
Oh, how that made me smile, O.. Shilo grins. How I savoured that moment, knowing that I had made your star and I had, just as easily, destroyed him. Because where is he? Where is, O.. Not one year removed from me doing your favour and is Aaron your ‘star’ now? Is he your ‘world champion’? Is he even here?
No…
He was never the same after I BROKE him. I showed him and you what I am truly capable of after that Rise to Greatness. I showed you what happens when you take from me… I take from you.
But did your family learn its lesson, O.? Did they learn not to deny me what I am owed?
Shilo shakes his head. Of course they didn’t. When have you EVER learned a lesson in the last near twenty years here in SCW? You, the proverbial God who can’t even control his kids, looking down on all of us ants – there to command as you see fit… there to take from us as you see fit…
Shilo snaps his fingers and a graphic changes across the tent to the graphic of “SCW Presents: Last Laugh”. He says nothing right away.
It was hard for me not take THAT personally, O.. After all, it was only the name of the move I used the last time I had a Rise to Greatness moment – the move I used to defeat Syren at RTG X to become World Champion…
The footage of that night is shown on the tent walls – the masked Shilo Valiant planting Syren with The Last Laugh before standing proudly with Marina Trent by his side, the Necro-Merchant holding the SCW World title.
You couldn’t let me die, could you, O.? You had to get the last laugh on me – remind me how you played me and took from me. Was your family’s pride THAT badly hurt, even though it was justifiable? You had to take one of the greatest memories of my career – of my LIFE – and remind me of how you robbed me of it for the sake of a rookie?!
Shilo’s jaw clenches as he grips his gloved hands. So, once more… you forced my hand…
The tent seems to shift again as Shilo Valiant is seen, choking the life out of Glory Braddock at Last Laugh!
My God! Shilo Valiant! Shilo Valiant s trying to choke out the Adrenaline Champion, Glory Braddock! Adam Sharper’s voice is heard throughout the tent…
I took what I wanted… and one more thing you could not deny me…
The footage changes to Shilo Valiant holding up the Adrenaline title at Retribution at the beginning of the year. The footage fades, leaving the camera back on Shilo as he stands in the middle of the tent.
And I have run roughshod over this entire federation while you – the best you could do -was ‘forget to mention my Supreme Champion status’ and slap fines on me. He grins wickedly. The best you could do…
The Man Who Laughs smiles before shaking his head. You only have yourself to blame for this, O.. You should have just let Shilo Valiant die. First, at the Hall of Fame, or when I had destroyed your precious ‘prodigy’ for my own amusement.
But you couldn’t. You couldn’t let me have the last laugh…and now it’s too late.
But that is precisely what I shall have! The smile becomes a full-blown, sinister grin.
Because, as I told Zoe, captain, I know full well WHY you wasted your time focusing on her, Gavin Taylor, and even giving a workout segment to Katie Steward and yet entirely ignored me. I know why I was not approached to speak of the battle royale or the reward awaiting its winner…
Because you know, as well as I do, who truly deserves it. Who truly deserves that RTG main-event moment… Valiant lifts a hand, holding up to his face in a self-gesture.
And it infuriates you, doesn’t it, O.? It’s the only thing you have over me. The one thing I have yet to truly ‘pay you back for’ – the RTG moment that I am owed! The one you STOLE from me over and over again! lowering his arm, Shilo glares at the camera – at his boss.
So tonight, whether I am fighting 37 people (since 1 and 2 are already ‘picked’) or I am the last one to enter… each person that I throw over the ropes… they will be you.
You will be Katie Steward’s arrogant fail.
You will be Josh Hudson’s nostalgic fail.
You will be the favourite Zoe Sperling as I toss her out of the ring and watch her fail.
Shilo gestures throwing each person mentioned out of the ring – each chosen, brought back, or ‘gifted’ by the boss of SCW.
And finally… when it’s done – and I look around at a ring as ‘empty’ as this tent? The road to Rise to Greatness will truly begin…
MY Rise to Greatness…
MY return to its main-event…
MY return to being the World Champion…
MY Rise to Greatness moment forever returned to me…
Shilo’s grin widens. And you, O.… you will do the best that you can to stop me – just like your puppets and favourites will… but like all of this past year… I will outplay, outsmart and out entertain every one of them… until I have what YOU stole from me… the graphic of “SCW Presents: Rise to Greatness” appears across the tent walls.
And you will look into the eyes of all 39 other people – the eyes of Zoe, your secret favourite – and you will know the greatest joke of all…
That you, the great O. D., are to blame for it all.
The showman shrugs his shoulders, almost sadly.
You should have let me die, D..
Instead, you will make me, just as you did almost a year ago…
You will make me the royale winner…
Make me the number one contender…
Make me the main event at Rise to Greatness…
And, trust me, O. D.… you will… make me laugh…
You OWE me that much!
With a snap of his fingers, Shilo sends the entirety of the tent into complete darkness.
![[Image: v2jesterfour.png]](https://i.ibb.co/kh10ZRf/v2jesterfour.png)
The Man Who Laughs
SCW Supreme Champion
4x SCW Heavyweight Champion
3x SCW U.S Champion
2x SCW Tag Team Champion (w/ Masquerade)
1x SCW Adrenaline Champion
1x SCW Television Champion
1x Majestic Premier Champion
1x Extraordinary Champion
Achievements
Winner of the Elimination Chamber (2011)
Rise to Greatness Main-Event (2011/2012/2013)
God of Wrestling Tournament Winner (2012)
Undisputed Heavyweight Champion (SCW/Majestic) (2012)
Shocking Moment of the Year (2012, 2013)
Male Wrestler of the Year (2012)
Taking Hold of the Flame Winner (2013)
Match of the Year: RTG X (2013)
3x SCW U.S Champion
2x SCW Tag Team Champion (w/ Masquerade)
1x SCW Adrenaline Champion
1x SCW Television Champion
1x Majestic Premier Champion
1x Extraordinary Champion
Achievements
Winner of the Elimination Chamber (2011)
Rise to Greatness Main-Event (2011/2012/2013)
God of Wrestling Tournament Winner (2012)
Undisputed Heavyweight Champion (SCW/Majestic) (2012)
Shocking Moment of the Year (2012, 2013)
Male Wrestler of the Year (2012)
Taking Hold of the Flame Winner (2013)
Match of the Year: RTG X (2013)