Post by Lantlas on Apr 20, 2006 17:02:03 GMT -5
The games were over, as far as I was concerned. As fun as brutally mocking my opponents into oblivion with newsbreaks and commercials could be, this one was different. A serious competitior, out for vengeance because of the victory I already have over him, even if he does claim it was because he got bored and ended it via disqualification. His mission seemed set; he wanted to end everything even remotely relating to HHW. The way I see it, HHW is my past, and most of the people involved with it wouldn't survive here. Seth Sinn had already been destroyed, Blade has a long way to go to be taken as a serious competitor, Anthony Douglas is just a delusional pseudo-psychopath. For Al Laiman to make Geno a threat to anyone in the main event, he'd better take him back to training camp and get the ring rust off. Ace's mission wasn't just about my past with HHW though.
Whether he'd admit it in public or not, I was a threat to his well-being and his championship belt. In the ring, he'd been with me three times. One of those times involved him being dropped with the Flame of the West, and the other was the infamous victory I held over him. Since then, a lot had changed. I'd once again managed to overcome the odds, come back from weeks of being ruthlessly attacked, and claim a victory over the Nightmare 2 Society. I held great respect for Jason Willard and American Nightmare, but Anthony Douglas was being his usual drama-queen self, sending out the same threats he had been since day one. Death, revenge, destruction... My, he was an emotional guy for a guy who claimed to have no emotion.
Oh, and let us not forget Ace's progress since we last met in the ring. He loved to mock the superstars who'd surrendered the twelve losses to me since I arrived in PCW. His favorite was the team of S.I.N., who provided a good bit of that cushioning in the undefeated category. Tony Brass and the Byrd... wow, I haven't thought in those two in quite a while. I don't think Tony Brass is even still employed, and the Byrd... what has he done since being repeatedly defeated by the Elven Warrior? Guest-starred in the power rankings special, met Jade in a dark match, defeated Ace Anderson... WAIT A SECOND! That's right!
...
Kieran Evenstar had much on her mind, and didn't mind filtering her thoughts into Devon's brain as she stared through her eyes. Devon had decided to meet up with her good friend Terry Sonada, being sure not to let Lantlas know where she was. Devon knew how much Lantlas would probably flip if he knew her whereabouts. Kieran was enraged that Devon was still visiting with this woman, despite all that she'd put her Elven friend Lantlas through. Kieran didn't agree with it, it didn't seem right. If she cared so much for Lantlas, why would she continue to associate with the one responsible for the destruction of his heart?
"So how is Chris doing," Devon asked. Kieran grimaced. Just thinking of that straight-edged, tall, dark, and handsome human and what he did made the Elven blood boil inside her.
"He's away on business right now," Terry replied. "With his new job, he does have to travel a lot. It's good though, because he got a huge raise out of it." Kieran only continued to become more enraged. She imagined her being proud of the fact that she left Lantlas for financial reasons. She'd probably taunt him to his face if she could. She struck Kieran as the type to just rub something like that in someone's face, just adding salt to the wounds she'd already forged in him. She decided something had to be done about it.
...
I let out a chuckle, as I checked the PCW archives to be absolutely sure. Greatness in the Flesh defeated in an upset by The Byrd. Checking the records, that means that I have three victories, including two Pay-Per-View matches over the Byrdman, with no defeats obviously. Two weeks ago, Ace Anderson defeated by the Byrd, and Ace is mocking me for having some of my victories obtained over that poor boy? I can wrestle good enough to defeat those guys, but apparently Ace had a bit of trouble with it!
"So I can't expect to match up with the Face of the Business," I thought out loud. "But I already beat the Byrd a couple of times!" If Byrd stood up to the Face of the Business, surely there was a line of succession to follow. Ace was a legend in his own mind, building himself up to be something beyond just the PCW champion. If he had trouble with young, inexperienced rookies, what was he going to do when he finally had to face the one who's repeatedly been number one in the power rankings, the one who's overcome every obstacle thrown at him, and the one who most recently lifted the 350 pound American Nightmare over his head and dropped him with a thunderous Elvish Tale? "Wasn't that the main event of Hostile Takeover," I reminisced. "Wouldn't you think the 'Face of the Business' should be main-eventing Pay-Per-Views? I didn't see him in the main event, did anyone else?"
...
"I have a question," Devon spoke lightly, as she knew it wasn't going to go over well. "Have you ever apologized to Lantlas for what you did to him?"
Terry's face went sour, and she was restraining herself from letting loose verbally. "I don't feel I need to apologize for anything," she finally responded, in a very stern and angry tone. "I'm going on with my life. I have a son, and I have a husband. That chapter of my life is closed, and I don't need it opened again so that some ex of mine can feel sorry for himself."
"Relax, I was just asking. I wasn't taking sides or anything! I'm your friend too, remember?"
"Right, I'm sorry. Hey, I'll be right back."
Kieran watched as Terry walked up the creaking wooden stairs, then finally split from Devon. Devon turned around frantically. "What the hell are you doing here, Kieran?"
"Picking up where you should've left off," Kieran angrily muttered. Kieran grabbed Devon by the shirt collar. "It's time for you to go." Kieran opened the front door and threw Devon down the stairs to the concrete sidewalk. "This chapter will be closed all right," Kieran warned through the closing crack of the front door."
...
"Darkness is all I will have left, huh? You make a lot of references to that path to the ring, how we are both traveling on said path." I had to wonder if it was a mere coincidence that he chose those words. Ace seemed a lot smarter than that. "As you build up your own ego, whore yourself to the camera like Chrissy in the Red Light district, and speak of Greatness happening in that ring, you just remember something... The path to the ring is not the only path that is under your feet, Ace." Not by a long shot, for one much greater awaited the steps of yet another ill-fated human. "It's time you stop worrying about the cheap metal ramp you walk down, looking around and trying not to die inside as the fans yell at you with all the built-up hate in their hearts. Lie to yourself and act like it's music to your ears, but the pain shows in your eyes. It's mere overcompensation. No amount of success can truly bury that from your heart, and you know it as well as I do. The tracks of dirt left by your feet now lie in a realm much greater than any human of flesh and blood, including you. The Elven Path, Ace. Look up at the full moon and listen to the sounds of the night, and notice you've walked into the same trap more than twelve others in PCW have... The Elven Path, another chapter in the Elvish Tale you'll become, as no one can survive the trip."
"Do you think it's a coincidence that those who've fallen under my wrath no longer want to wrestle anymore? Remember Johnny Vivacious? What happened after he was ruthlessly defeated, despite having all the odds in his favor? Have you read the latest headlines in the news section? Jason Willard is contemplating retirement after two straight defeats by the Elven Warrior. It's no coincidence, Ace. This may be the very epic moment of your career that lies in the back of your mind. An egotistical one like yourself buries it, supressed it, doesn't ever make any mention of it for fear that will actually happen to him someday. The day you look across the ring and realize the one contending for your championship, the one you've thought yourself to be superior to, is going to defeat you. That day has arrived, Ace. Welcome to the Elven Path."
I thanked the camera man, and headed back towards my locker room. As I was walking down the hallway, I passed by a local police officer. I could hear the voice on his receiver, and I'm not sure why I was paying any attention to it. Suddenly, something sounded familiar. "All units respond, there is a fire downtown. All units respond."
The officer picked up his radio and responded. "Give me the 20, over."
"412 Reno Avenue," the voice came back.
"Terry!"
...
"As you can see, the fire crews are setting up around the burning old house here downtown," the news lady reported. "It is unknown if any of the residents are still inside the building at this time."
Someone is seen breaking through one of the top windows. "Hey, get out of there!" one of the firemen shouts. The figure doesn't listen, and excited reports are coming back on the radio. "Someone has gone into the burning house," the fireman yells. "He's going to get himself killed!"
"Reports are coming in that an unknown person has broken into the burning house, most likely to attempt a rescue. The firefighters are preparing to break down the doors and try to stop this blaze from the inside, because they're having trouble containing it."
One of the side windows breaks open, and someone falls out of it. A red-haired girl, her face covered in ash, falls to the grass as the paramedics rush to her aid. The girl is petrified, screaming that her child is still inside.
"One of the residents of the home has been rescued, but she's saying that her newborn baby is still inside. Due to the danger and the size of this fire, they are considering the baby's chance of survival to be minimal."
The window to the attic suddenly crashes open, and a dark figure is seen with his arms wrapped around something. With the focus on the roof, no one notices another figure slowly walking away from the scene on the ground.
"Someone is on the roof, and it looks as if he has the newborn baby in his arms."
The ladders extend to the roof, and the firefighters pull the two from the top of the roof just as the blaze explodes, and fire completely overtakes the house. The water blasts from the hoses seem almost useless against this raging inferno.
"Wait, I have an update here... It seems that the person who ran in to save this family was none other than local wrestling superstar Lantlas Anduril. His connection to this family is unknown, but I'm sure they are certainly grateful, for both the mother and the baby are in stable condition."
...
I brushed the ashes off of my shirt and looked at my arms, as they were almost completely black. There were several burns on my hand, and a piece of wood had clonked me on the back of the head. With the exception of the swelling, I felt all right. What drove me to that, I haven't the slightest idea. Somehow, the safety of a mother and her child was more important than any problems I'd ever had with her in the past. Not to my surprise, I saw Terry approaching me. Her face was not as I expected. It was one of scorn, of anger. I suddenly felt a hand sweep across my face, and I was taken aback. "You always have to be the hero, don't you?" What, did she think I was doing this as something to make myself look good? "Stay away from me, and stay away from my family, you sick psycho!"
I felt myself retreating, a crashing inside of me I hadn't felt in such a long time. My soul was tearing in two, and I fell on the grass, hardly aware of anything surrounding me. How could someone take a situation like this and misconstrue it so badly? She would rather have died, for she thought I was only there to try and get her back? Did our previous conversation mean nothing?
A steel-toed work boot caught me off guard and kicked me in the back of the head. I'd already been burned there, so it tingled something fierce. "Eerily familiar, is it not?" That voice, this couldn't be anything good. As the boots walked around in front of me, I heard her speak again. "What's wrong, Elfboy? Not realizing that society has given up on you?"
I pushed myself to a sitting position, and looked up at Kieran, the flames of hell burning in her eyes of unimaginable evil. "They have not."
She bent down in front of me, and punched me right in the jaw. She then stradled me, pinning me down with one of her boots to my throat. "Oh, but they have. Think of those who've used you, who've betrayed you. Think of all the lives you've ruined. You do nothing but screw everything up in which you're involved!"
"That's not true."
"Hey, it's not my fault. I'm not the one who got his own brother killed." I struggled against the boot on my throat, but it was to no avail. The elf was a strong one, that was for sure. "What's the matter, strike a nerve, did I? That's okay, seeing as you were responsible for Dr. White's death as well. So dedicated to going out and trying to save everyone that you end up getting them killed! Maybe you should've ended your own life and balanced out fate yourself!"
"Why are you doing this?"
"Isn't it obvious? I thrive in other's pain. Watching you get crushed by some little red-head, oh wasn't that a rush! It's so funny watching you, confused to whether what you're seeing is a vision or not... Maybe all those dreams you had were real! Maybe you're just love's bitch, and you keep going back only to metaphorically get your own throat slit, you stupid bastard!"
I tried to flip her boot away, but she only cracked the heel into my trachea. She started to get angry at this point. "Just like your father, trying to be such a good guy. That little pansy boy scout followed all the orders, and look where it got him! Dead as a fuckin' doornail in some foreign country, and by his own men nonetheless!"
I could only whisper after the shot to the throat. "He was trying to support his family."
She laughed maniacally. "You keep telling yourself that," she sarcastically exhorted. "Is that why your mom went so nuts after he was gone?"
Something was burning inside of me, my blood was beginning to pump faster. The heat was rising to my cheeks, as I stared up at this hateful creature. She stared back down, and her grin grew wider. "Let us not forget my favorite one of all," she smirked. "When as Devon, I turned on you at your weakest moment." The cords were getting tighter. "Devon Drake, the love of your life at that point, so pitiful. It's a shame she was so afraid to tell you how she really felt." I didn't want to know, but I had a feeling it was coming anyway. "She never gave a damn about you, Lantlas. She didn't care about you, and she certainly didn't love you. You were just some stupid fucking doormat that carried her to a career, and she lived off all the money she earned destroying you!"
My eyes turned green, and the Elven spirit within me was enraged. At once, I twisted her foot away from my throat and dropped her to the ground like a rag doll. I never felt stronger in my entire life. "The blood is going to flow like a river!" I stormed off, heading back to where the most optimal target in the entire business would be waiting soon enough... Ace Anderson.
...
Kieran Evenstar jumped to her feet as she saw Devon peeking out from the brush. She watches as Lantlas disappears into the night with her arms crossed and a smile on her face. Devon is furious, and she pushes Kieran hard. "Why the fucking hell did you say that to him? You know God damn well I love him!" Kieran merely smiles again and looks back towards the distance. "Fucking answer me! Why did you do that?!"
Kieran finally turns her head, still smiling. "Think Ace stands a chance now?"