Post by DRAUGR on Dec 14, 2023 14:02:00 GMT -5
It all comes down to this. Over fifty days as champion. Six successful defenses. Challenger after challenger… conquered. Here I stand… still YOUR Action Wrestling World Television Champion. Righting the wrongs of past champions, all while forging my own legacy. All of this, done under the supervision of Devil's Gate. They have the illusion of control over me, but I live in reality. I am the master of my fate. Soon enough, they will know my name. It's all coming back to me.
Our adventure begins at Devil's Gate in Castle Rock, Maine. A banquet is being set up to honor the lifetime achievement of Dr. Reginald Royce, who is clinging to this mortal plane only a few floors down. The great hall is filled with food and beverages from every culture who Devil's Gate has influenced over the last century. No guests of great note have arrived yet. Expected to attend are Devil's Gate alumni Edward Norton, Blippi, and Sara Pettis. For now, the only occupants are staff, as they turn this great hall into a… greater hall. Onto the scene appears Pete Harper, with a scowl on his face. Next to him stands Dr. Erik Konnors.
Konnors: What's the matter?
Harper: This is all wrong.
Konnors: I've checked everything off of the list though.
Harper: None of this should be happening, Konnors. This isn't a time for celebration. You're treating this like a time of peace when we are at war.
Konnors: You're being overdramatic. Everything is fine. Have a drink. Relax.
Harper: I haven't had a drop since Afghanistan and you damn well know it.
Konnors: My apologies. I'm only trying to lighten the mood.
Harper: That's not going to happen until this sham of a banquet is over with. If word gets out about —
The doors to the hall open up, and guests begin entering. Many of them are in awe of how the hall has been transformed into the majesty before them. Sara Pettis enters with a man on her arm. The two stop and share words, before the man kisses her on the cheek and goes off to fetch drinks. She then approaches Konnors and Harper, who look —
Whispers in the halls of Devil's Gate are that my reign is nearing it's end. They say I'm a failure. They say I'm beyond repair. They look at my performance at Turmoil in the Trial By Fire and only focus on the no contest, rather than challenger after challenger that I disposed of. I have given Action Wrest — nay. I have given Devil's Gate everything. They repaid me with public assault. That ensured I would continue my reign as champion but… it was more than that.
They were sending a message not just to me, but the Action Wrestling as a whole. They want us all to believe they are in control of me, you, all of it. There is no denying they've lurked in the shadows for years, pulling strings when opportunity arose. They placed us each in the ranks of Action Wrestling and made it possible for us go succeed. I am the latest example of their political influence.
Dominance without resistance sums up my time here thus far. The only one to come close to taking all of this from me is… Jessie Lee. She has the kind of conviction it takes to fight an entire dark army, and I… admire her spirit. She was right about me all along. I am nothing more than what they've made me. Day by day, though, I am becoming more… me. If I can crack through the final layers, mayhaps I can break free.
Our paths will again cross at Holiday Bash, and I know in my heart of hearts that Jessie Lee will fight harder than ever. She knows what's at stake here. She knows what I'm made of. More importantly… she knows what Devil's Gate is capable of. Her eyes are always open as she walks the earth. Nothing escapes her. Nothing except for… the Television Championship.
We've got this date with destiny at Holiday Bash, and she undoubtedly wants to put my championship under her tree for the holidays. I don't blame her. For so long, this has been the workhorse prize of this company, and nobody deserves it more than she does. Nobody except for its current holder, that is. While I came it by means of nefarious works in the shadows, I will hold onto it by means of breaking the chains that bind me to this evil corporation.
My fight is not just against flesh and blood. My fight is against the forces of darkness. After everything, it comes down to the two of us. We fought until the bitter end at Turmoil, and the satisfying conclusion comes at Holiday Bash. Everything is on the line. My championship. My freedom. Possibly even my life.
— stunned by her appearance. Dressed like she's walking the red carpet, the defacto matriarch of Devil's Gate meets up with Konnors and Harper. The closer she gets, the colder her expression gets. Her focus is on Harper, who straight punches in the face the moment she is within reach.
Harper hits the floor, and security rushes over to restrain Sara. Konnors helps Harper to his feet, as he wipes blood from his lip. Security starts dragging her away until —
Harper: Stop! Let her go!
The guards seem perplexed but they obey the command. Harper looks at Sara and motions to take their quarrel out into the hallway. Only the two of them leave the great hall. The door closes behind them and—
Harper: What the fu—
She shoves him up against the wall, holding her forearm to his throat.
Pettis: When were you going to fucking tell me, Pete?! No, no, NO! When were you going to fucking tell HIM?!!
She backs off of him, then paces back and forth in the hallway. Harper is visibly shaken.
Harper: Who… who told you?
Pettis: My dad did, Pete! I'm pissed as hell at him for keeping this from me for so long! But you?! You orchestrated this whole thing!!
Harper: When Royce had his aneurysm and my clearance became unlimited, I started digging into all of his… special… projects. That's when I found… him. Locked away in a cryo chamber in a sub-sub-sub basement. When I found out who he was, I enlisted Konnors to… bring him back.
Pettis: And you didn't find it necessary to fill me in… because… why?! I'm a majority shareholder in this place, Pete! I hold my entire family's interest in Devil's Gate! Including Nathan's!
Harper: I know, Sara. I'm sorry. I didn't know how… or when… to tell you that —
Pettis: That your latest project… the mighty DRAUGR… is Nathan's father...
…
I now know the truth.
Everything they have kept from me.
My name is Viktor Gust. I was born in 1938 in Berlin, Germany. I enlisted in Devil's Gate many years later, and became the first successful subject in Projekt ICE… shortly before the birth of my son.
The world came to know him as Raging Dead.
I never got to meet him.