Post by Teo Blaze on Jan 30, 2022 12:15:44 GMT -5
“I’m not mad, I’m just disappointed.”
Perhaps it was a cliche, but something about the way that the words hung in the air…made it sound like a threat.
“Actually, scratch that, I’m pretty goddamned mad, too.”
Revolution. Fine word, isn’t it? I was hoping this match would encapsulate it. Fighting. Rising up. War...I wanted hunger, I wanted focus. I wanted wolves roaring for my throat! For this!”
Teo slaps the belt on his shoulder, a loud, sharp noise!
“I wanted the chance to put down my first true revolution as champion!
And what do I get?”
Teo turns towards one wall, where three portraits are hanging, one for each opponent.
“I get a whining, spoiled child who isn’t even supposed to be here. Who got this title shot by demanding to see the manager, like some midwestern housewife. Roddy ‘Karen’ Zalez has somewhat of a ring to it, no?
But I could get past that, I’m a forgiving guy. But then, rather than taking the chance to prove he deserves to be in this match? He sucks up. He primps, preens, and negotiates every advantage. Final entry in Cruiserhavoc, and not a thing to show for it.
That’s what drives me mad about Roddy. He politics his way into handouts and then exposes himself every time he manages to stumble backwards into an opportunity he doesn’t deserve. But then he knows this. Why do you think he's sucking up to Bunga? Because he knows that he can't earn it!”
Teo slams his fist against the Roddy portrait, shattering the glass. A small trickle of red running as he moves onto the next portrait, of Adelaide Ainsworth making a very vulgar gesture.
“Oh Addy, dear sweet Addy. Where did it all go wrong, hun? You came onto Cruiserclash with one of the biggest pops since Lissie Hope-
Sorry, sore spot? I know being second best can be hard to…swallow?”
Teo raises an eyebrow at the camera.
"I must admit Addy…I expected more out of you. A flash in the pan reign against Regan notwithstanding, you haven’t even been here a year and you’re already burnt out. The passion, the anger, the take no shit attitude? It’s been replaced with this melancholy emptiness. This…disgust.
You’ve gone from bittersweet to just bitter.
From a blooming rose to a gin blossom.
That Lissie crack was a cheap shot, but then I think you’d be pretty familiar with cheap shots given how many bars you’ve been frequenting.”
Teo leans against the wall, looking disdainfully at the portrait.
“I look at what you’ve become- letting your unresolved issues spill into this sour mix of apathy and frustration. You are no longer what’s best for Cruiserclash. I’d love to see a return to form, to do this right.
But right now? You’re a shell of your own former potential.”
Teo turns towards the final portrait. The Gatecrashers, with one half scribbled over in black.
“And here we are. The man from whom I took everything. Cruiserhavoc was the best night of your life, Void. You finally got that championship that had eluded you for months, maybe even years.
And then… it all went away. You didn’t know what to do next. Loudly proclaimed how you’d build a dynasty, only to let it slip through your fingers.
That I can forgive. We all falter, we’re only human. But Void, you’re not a real champion just because you win the belt. It’s what you do with it.
All three of you, listen carefully. This belt? It is heavy. It holds the hopes and dreams of this entire roster, and two of you have felt that weight before, and you both let it drag you down, like a golden albatross. The third is so weak willed it would probably snap his spine.
I have the strength to carry that weight. And I want to take this belt, and elevate it. To hold it proudly over my head!
And until you understand what that means, why this belt will destroy you just as soon as save you? Not one of you will ever be able to."
With that, Teo turns, the camera panning over the portraits as the scene fades.
