The throne sat atop a platform, and a semi-circular staircase surrounds the platform. Behind the platform was a window that stretched from floor to ceiling, but the glass that was once there had shattered… Fragments of the stained glass scattered across the floor, with tiny pieces clinging to its former shape. However, there was nothing to see outside of the windows; what should be a landscape, or even an overlook of the city, was just a fog that ensnared any who dwelled in such a place. Beyond the fog, if you could even manage to get a glimpse of it, was nothing but darkness. Unlit torches hung on the walls. Tattered banners hung from the walls and ceiling. The emblem, although torn, resembled a white wolf on a black background.
Sitting on the throne appears to be an apparition; a jester with a sickening smile on his face, and a crown atop his head as well as a golden belt draped over his shoulder, and his gaze fixed upon the oak doors… Footsteps heard from the other side of the oak doors signifying the impending arrival of a guest, and a shadow stops on the other side of the door. And then… BOOM! The jester’s eyes go wide whilst the doors fall toward him, and fall onto the ground with a thunderous thud. Dust and debris flies into the air, and the jester narrows his eyes on the doorway as the dust settles, and the ever-familiar figure of
Wraith stands with a sadistic smirk on their own face, and their eyes–the blackened sclera, and the red outlines–narrow in turn against the jester that clutches the belt tighter.
Wraith takes one step forward, their heel falling silent against the once extravagant rug that stretched from where they stood, all the way to the throne. The jester sits back and shakes his head before finally bellowing,
“No! This is mine! I earned this!”Wraith cocks their head to the side, and lets out a light chuckle under their breath. They bite down on their bottom lip like a wolf salivating over the sight of its prey. They sneer while maintaining their gaze, and now baring their teeth to the jester who in turn starts kicking his feet as if to want to push the throne backward, but it was much too heavy… He sneers and snarls at the approaching foe before raising a hand as if to tell him to halt.
“Stop– This is mine!” the jester repeats. His lips quiver while trying to muster the courage to speak against the entity, and considering each and every insult, jab, and threat that he could consider. He licks his lips nervously, finally managing to find the strength to stand, stand tall, and stand unwavering.
“NOT ANOTHER STEP!”The distance between them is closing, and
Wraith is halfway to the throne… But a fire shoots out from the ground, creating an illusion of a chain as it wraps around
Wraith’s wrist, and
Wraith shoots their gaze toward it; while distracted by that one, a second one shoots out from the other side and restrains his other wrist and earns his gaze… The smirk wiped from their face, and they scrunch their face up before finally turning their attention back to the jester. The jester appears just as dumbfounded as
Wraith, but he is not about to protest the aid from the savior. A third and fourth chain of fire shoots out from the ground, and takes
Wraith by the waist, and by the shoulders, as the fire digs into their shoulders in an attempt to bring them to their knees.
Wraith grits their teeth, and resists. Their gaze returns to the jester who is watching in awe.
“You possess something I want…” Wraith says, and grunts; the fire is burning against their flesh, but still, they stand.
“Everybody wants what I have, but it’s mine now! And no one is taking it from me!” the jester replies.
A circular flame surrounds
Wraith now, and a small explosion goes off just a couple of meters ahead of
Wraith; the fire creates a small illusion of a phoenix before a man emerges from the fire, his eyes just as bright as the flame that brought him forth.
The jester nods his head, and sits back down on the throne…even letting his legs rest over the armrest while he just relaxes,
“If you are going to want to take this from me, you’re going to have to go through this strapping lad.” The jester says nonchalantly.
“Phoenix…” Wraith mutters whilst eyeing the figure ahead of him, and despite the frustration and anger that has built up inside of them,
Wraith still cocks their head back to the side and flashes a smirk at the man. Several seconds of silence follow as
Wraith’s eyes study the man standing before him. They licks their lips, and groan while retaining the strength and will to stretch themself forward despite everything trying to hold them back.
“Do you really believe that you possess the power to stop me?” Wraith asks.
The figure standing before them sneers at
Wraith, who just snarls back at him; the Phoenix speaks to
Wraith whilst walking toward them,
“You will not be claiming anything!” the Phoenix shouts, and stretches his hand toward
Wraith’s neck;
Wraith is able to break free from the bindings, and raises their arms in defense while continuing for their own retaliation, but an explosion occurs where the two collide! The jester is awestruck, and rises from the throne whilst waiting for the smoke to clear, and as it does, neither figure is there. Fire remains on the floor at the epicenter from where the Phoenix and
Wraith had collided, and the jester in turn begins to chuckle nervously, before cackling aloud and falling back in the chair as he kicks his legs excitedly in front of him from the amusement, and feeling as if he does not have to be bothered anymore by either entity.
Sabin leans against the railing of the balcony… The balcony overlooks a grand yard, and many, many, many dogs are running to and fro as they chase and play with each other. However, they do not seem to have Sabin’s attention. His eyes are locked on his phone, and the familiar voices of Lincoln Phelps, and Greyson Marks are heard.
“Preston is controlling everything. From the pace, to what’s happening. Dane is in total control.” Greyson calls during the match.
He barely blinks… Carefully pinpointing everything that Dane Preston has in his arsenal; Dane looked as if he were steamrolling ahead to take the victory in this headliner, but it was not to be. Trickery was how it had occurred, but trickery was not something that neither Sabin nor Wraith had in their own arsenal; more importantly, it was not something that Wraith favored, as they favored hurting their opponent in every single way imaginable.
“What’chya up to?!” a voice calls out, and Sabin raises his head just in time to spot his aunt, Jennie Docherty…formerly known as Jennifer Docherty-Rodriguez, but a recent divorce between her and Ricky brought their short marriage to an end, and sent Jennie to move back in with Tara, her older sister and the mother of Sabin.
“Where’s Ashley?! Where’s Tara?! Who– is that hottie on your screen?!” Jennie asks and takes the phone away from Sabin.
Sabin reactionarily reaches for his phone,
“I’m trying to see who I’m up against.”“Mmmm!” Jennie moans whilst eyeing the screen.
“Damn it–” Sabin mutters.
Jennie clicks the power button on the phone, and tucks it away into her pocket.
“Mister, I moved back in five days ago and you’ve been doing nothing but work, work, work, work, work, work, and I’m tired of it!” She says whilst leaning over the barricade, and the dogs have immediately gained her attention as she watches them running to and fro and can even see her very own
Pandabear playing amongst the rest of the dogs.
“She fits right in! BUT YOU! What’s up? Why are you so worried about being perfect? Why aren’t you talking to me? Why aren’t you gaming with me?! You have a pregnant girlfriend, and you’re just tucked away training all the damn time! STOP! STOP!” Jennie rambles, and Sabin nods his head while standing beside her.
“I know, I know,” Sabin says, and licks his lips,
“I’m just– I’m trying to fix everything I messed up.”“Boy, you didn’t mess ANYTHING up!” Jennie answers.
“I did…” Sabin mutters.
“How? Boy, you kicked out of THREE–” Jennie holds up three fingers toward Sabin,
“–of his finishers! THREE!”“I mean… I could have avoided his finisher.” Sabin retorts.
Jennie appears at a loss for words, and shrugs her shoulders; she cannot seem to argue with that logic,
“Alright, you got me there. But you can’t think about that! It was still impressive! And you’ve bounced back rather nicely, I would say! I mean, seriously…you’ve been on a tear for Heir to the Throne, and look at all of those people at PWE that you beat! None of them are pushovers!” Jennie says in her most astonished tone.
It was true. Sabin… Wraith… fought hard. Sabin… Wraith… gave it everything they had, but there was no denying the final outcome: a loss. However, Sabin was beginning to climb back to the top of the industry.
There was a faint smile on Sabin’s face as he looked forward, and his gaze seemed more dazed out. He was lost in the pride that he felt toward his win at PWE, and he knew full well what he desired… and he knew the means that he would have to take to get there. The PWE Excellence Championship. It was the only thing that mattered to him. It was the only thing that he wanted, and he did not truly care who had it when the time would come that he would battle for it. He just knew that he would fight for it.
That smile does start to wipe from his face, as he bites down on his bottom lip and reality begins to sink back into his mind… He was in for another tough fight. He was fighting another top contender. Sabin finally does hold his hand out in a gesture to retrieve his phone,
“I need my phone back.” Sabin says.
Jennie sighs.
“Fine…” she reaches into her pocket and takes the phone out, putting it back in Sabin’s hand,
“But I’m going to go make sure the sanctuary is stocked, and when I get back, we have a raid. And your ass had better be there because I need my top DPS back in the group! Deal?”Sabin does not give an audible answer to her, but he nods.
“Good! And…Sabin…you better win…” Jennie says. She walks toward the staircase that leads out to the backyard that was connected to the animal sanctuary. Sabin remained on the porch, and turned his phone back and began reviewing everything he could find on Dane Preston, and studying as much as he could.
The moonlight illuminates the interior of the Docherty household, giving off a faint glow off of every surface. A whistle is heard echoing throughout the home, and the camera swerves in and out of each room until it finally lands upon Sabin seated at the bar; he has one elbow propped up and his head resting atop his hand, and the other arm across the marble countertop… He taps his finger against the countertop, while continuing to whistle aloud, and when the camera finally gets close enough, he turns his head to unveil the darkened eyes and the red irises. Wraith. Wraith turns their head toward the camera with a smirk on their face. The whistling ceases, and Wraith tilts their head to the side before speaking.
“Well, well, well, if it is not the very definition of TRY getting in my way this week!” Wraith says with a light chuckle,
“DANE! PRESTON!” Wraith clicks their tongue several times and taps their fingers against the countertop a tad bit louder than before.
“Dane, Dane, Dane… When are you finally going to learn? When are you going to learn that you are constantly in over your head? FIGHT? When you thought, Dane– YOU BELIEVED that you had what it took to take the title away from Dickie Watson… but… YOU FAILED. You FAILED, and had an entire building brought down upon you! And–” Wraith cocks their head to the side, giving a subtle shrug,
“–you survived.” They take a momentary silence while seemingly weighing the outcome from that fateful night.
“But as much as you prepared, as much as you talked, as much as you believed, you still COULD NOT walk out with your arm raised as the winner! And this is something that I see out of you, Dane, it is something that I see quite a lot…out of you…particularly…you talk. You talk, and talk, and talk, and talk, but you…” Wraith clicks their tongue again, and gives a slight stutter,
“Y-y-y-you just CANNOT walk that same walk! Everything ELUDES you! How many times, Dane, have you been at the top of the mountain…? How many times, Dane, have you fought for that coveted position to be considered the greatest of the greats? The greatest of a company? How many times, Dane?” Wraith asks, and then repeats the question by merely mouthing it.
They then turn their attention away from the camera momentarily to glance at their own fingers as they count one, two, and three. They mouth the word “three” to themselves, and again to the camera, before finally raising their voice,
“Three, Dane? Three times, and three times the failure?” Wraith chuckles, and clenches their fist before pounding it against the countertop; it trembles slightly as they press their knuckles down and lean in closer toward the camera,
“I have fought ONCE to claim one throne, Dane, and do you want to know how it ended? Hmm? Do you want to know what happened when I fought for my ascension…?” They take another momentary silence, and close their eyes.
Wraith could remember that night, vividly, just as they could remember the night that they had felt like their own failure; the night that Vhodka Black had become the number one contender for the PWE Excellence Championship, but no more than two weeks later, Wraith would ascend to the top of another company as the youngest to ever hold their championship. The fond memory brought a smile to their face, and they shook their head in satisfaction, as if to savor the glory.
“I CONQUERED, Dane! My first time fighting in the limelight, and I did what some people could never do after twenty years in this industry! I did it in a DOMINATING fashion! And I will get back to this a little bit later, because I intend, Dane… I intend to break you in the same way that I broke him, and in the same way that I will break everybody who gets between me and the Excellence Championship, UP TO, and INCLUDING Allen Chaney. At a company where you are nothing more than a curtain jerker; I AM A GOD. I am what EVERYONE cares about! I am bringing that SAME ENERGY to the PWE, and believe me when I say it is just a matter of time before people forget that Allen Chaney is the champion, because they are only going to look...at...me! I am the one that is putting that company on the map; I am the one that everyone is talking about! I am THE ONE that people are looking to bring out to the rest of the world so that I may spread my carnage! I may spread my savagery! I may show the world that this–” Wraith digs their knuckles against the countertop for a moment longer, and then stretches their arm out as if to gesture to the world around him,
“–is ALL MINE! In one company, you are not fit to lace up my boots, but we are not there, are we?” They say and finish with a snicker.
“We are somewhere where your name seems to carry a weight to it…” Wraith stands up from their seat, and paces back and forth whilst maintaining their gaze on the camera,
“Even if that weight you carry is nothing but hot air… People know you. It has earned you a right, has it not? It has earned you the right to fight as a headliner… It has earned you the right to step in the ring–” They place their hand against their chest,
“–against me.” Wraith says and draws in a deep breath, but the arrogant smirk remains on their face, and they cannot restrain from letting out a light snorting laughter whilst shaking their head slowly.
“My first match in the PWE was against the current Excellence Champion, a man that COULD NOT defeat me! A man that let someone, who was an outsider, come into their house, and they could not stop me… The fault was that I could not stop him, either, but to have that deck stacked against you is such the life of a conqueror,” Wraith states through gritted teeth,
“But I still came close to becoming the number one contender…so close…” Wraith sneers, but considers everything that has happened since they signed their name to a full contract in PWE; going against some of the people who were arguably some of the best, and some of the most renown in the industry.
“But it is exactly as I told Paul Montuori; exactly as I told Savannah Sunshine, Jason Long, Maladi, and Beryl Weir: JUST WATCH! Because you are in my way, Dane; you have been PLACED in my way, and that is a place that you…DO NOT… WANT… TO BE. Watch as I CONQUER the world around me! Watch as I force everyone to CRUMBLE, and watch, Dane, as everybody that is placed in front of me in the future is going to… COWER. They are going to COWER away from being put in the same ring as me all because they know… THEY KNOW… that I am going to do what I say I say I am. I signed my name to the paper, and defeated the best, and now, I step into the ring with DANE PRESTON! And… look at my eyes, Dane,” Wraith says while pointing toward their own eyes.
“At Victory, I am going to BREAK YOU. I am going to do something to you that Dickie could not do; I am going to do something to you that a BUILDING could not do! I am going to have you admit to yourself, to the company, to the industry, and to the world that you…CANNOT…beat me. Dane–” Wraith licks their lips and leans a little closer, tilting their head back and forth while maintaining their gaze,
“I am going to make you tap out in front of everybody!”Wraith holds themself up by leaning against the counter, and taps their fingers again several times against the surface whilst giving a momentary silence to let that threat, that promise, sink into Dane Preston’s mind, whom he knew was watching and listening somewhere. The sadistic smirk on his face remained the entire time.
“You see, everything that has happened to you in your life, everything that has tried to break you down… Much like you… Has failed. That is something that, I suppose, I should give you a little bit of credit for. DANE PRESTON! No matter how many times you knock him down, he is going to get back up!” Wraith says in an uplifting tone.
“But at Victory, that changes. At Victory, Dane, you are going to fall… And you are going to know deep, deep, DEEP in your heart that there was no other outcome! You are going to replay this match in your head after the match… Hours later. Days later. Weeks later. Months from now! YEARS! This is going to be the one match that you look back and tell everybody that there was… NO HOPE… And you are going to train, Dane! You are going to prepare yourself! You are going to prepare for everything that you know is going to come your way, and as much as you train… as much as you prepare… that thought is going to tick inside of your mind, Dane. That thought is going to linger: there is no hope. You are going to have your trainer hyping you up! You are going to have your friends hyping you up! You are going to have your family hyping you up! But at the end of each day until Victory, and until it comes to pass… you are going to know that you never had any hope.” Wraith gives a faint smile, and a quick nod before turning away and pacing back and forth slowly.
“People are going to tell you things like… better luck next time. You almost had him. Tough break! But you know… Dane… that each… and every… person… that says that to you, is lying! Each and every person that tries to build you back up is not going to know what you know, they are not going to experience what you will have experienced!” Wraith snickers,
“But I know that this is not going to be our last encounter… Even when I make you tap out in the center of the ring, even when I make you have to admit to the entire world that you could not defeat me, I am going to one day hold that Excellence Championship over my head… I am going to one day call myself the Excellence Champion.” Wraith licks their lips.
“And the best part…” Wraith says while taking a couple of steps forward. They take a momentary silence before finally holding their hand low, leveled, and he smirks,
“Like a moth to a flame! That title is going to draw everyone towards me! That title is going to have everyone marching to their own demise! And you are going to stand amongst them… Because there is going to be NO ONE left! Because I am going to go through everybody! ONE! BY ONE! BY ONE! And then we are going to eventually circle back to you, Dane, and you are going to think of everything you can do to avoid being in the ring with me, but those same trainers– those same friends– those same family members are going to somehow convince you that you have a chance, but that is when you are going to feel that itch…” Wraith says while raising their hand to their shoulder, giving a slight scratch to imitate the idea of an itch.
“You are going to feel EVERYTHING that I do to you at Victory this week… Every bit of pain, and agony that you endure this week is going to come back to you, and you are going to wonder what you got yourself into! This is the night that you learn, but the next time that you do get into the ring with me… It is just going to be a reminder. The only thing that you are going to think about in the future is thinking to just get it over with. Do not…make me…chase you down… Just… get it over with.” Wraith states boldly.
“Dane Preston…” They say, and let the name linger for several seconds before he finally lets out another laugh, and shakes his head at the mentioning of his name,
“Fuck around and find out… It might actually MEAN SOMETHING, if you could… you know… ACTUALLY DO SOMETHING. Dane. Preston. Fuck around, and find out.”Wraith snorts aloud and then snaps their fingers together causing the scene to fade to black.
The phoenix and
Wraith re-emerge inside of a forest, and both of them tumble to the ground… Wraith is the first one to get up to his feet, as the phoenix writhes on the ground, but raises his head toward Wraith who is already walking away from him.
“Do not turn your back to me!” the phoenix shouts at Wraith.
Wraith stops in his tracks, and scoffs; they do turn toward the phoenix as he rises and begins to brush some of the dirt off,
“This is a fight that you cannot win.” Wraith says smugly.
“I can–” the phoenix says weakly.
Wraith dashes forward, and almost sinks into the shadows before re-emerging directly in the face of the fallen phoenix, and they tilt their head back and forth while snarling, and sneering; they take the phoenix by the collar,
“Take my word for it. You are out of your league here. You need to stay out of my way. The jester…is mine.” Wraith says in a commanding tone.
