Post by Teo Blaze on Jan 26, 2020 23:48:22 GMT -5
“Everyone has a choice, Kevin.”
The voice comes from somewhere beyond sight; as the scene slowly drifts into view, the slice of Americana that greets the viewer is that of a typical urban sidewalk on a bright and sunny day. Shoppers carry shimmering bags of purchased goods, their heads buried in cellular devices. Electronic addiction at the push of a button, the swipe of a screen.
“The life we are given? It is a precious thing. A prize more precious than any wealth...any gold...any title. The chance to live.
And with that gift..? We are given a choice.
Who do we want to be? What do we make of ourselves? What will we mold from the clay of our bodies?”
As the voice, distinctly familiar and instantly recognizable, continues speaking, the camera slowly pans towards a pair of people, a young man and woman, walking down the street. The face of each illuminated by some other electronic distraction, whether a mobile game or simply a social media update, the effect is the same. Their eyes are glued not at what is in front of them, but at the screen below.
“I’ll make no secret of our similarities. After all, we were heralded quite literally as champions of the people for a near-identical length of time. But there was always a fundamental difference, wasn’t there? To you, the people were a weapon, a shield to place in front of yourself. A pied piper luring them to a sleep of loyalty, believing the lie that was the Brotherhood until the moment it all came crashing down mere moments from history.
And ever since then, let’s face it, you’ve had to live with second place. You’ve had to live knowing that not only did you fail to break my record, you lost the People’s Championship to Jared Holmes, a man who Teo del Sol had long ago embarrassed in front of the world.
And ever since that moment..? Your failure has been an obsession. You have never managed to answer the question of why you were not able to do what Teo del Sol could, even with the world at your back, even with the entire planet under your spell.
Or so you thought.
Perhaps that’s why you attacked me. You wanted to take from me as I had taken from you. You wanted to be the one to dethrone Corey Black, and prove that you were able to do what I couldn’t. After all, it didn't make sense to you, how could someone like me be better than someone like you? A simple attack and the world would see the truth.
...Of course, we all know how that went, don’t we?”
As the voice, now easily confirmed as that of Teo Blaze, speaks, his words carrying with them the kind of coldness that can only come from years of experience, the two young walkers, heads still hanging on the neon glow of their devices, move forward in a dazed, zombie-like drudge.
“It’s always nagged at you, Kevin, the fact that you were never able to win their hearts, their loyalty. You have always ruled through one thing and one thing alone: fear. You want the world to think that you are the smart guy, that you have it all figured out. You look at the world with disgust, and its people? Simply pawns in your little game. Dreamers, walking along a path towards oblivion.”
The camera slowly pans around, the pair is walking forward, their pace non-stop, towards an intersection; but what they have failed to notice, their eyes locked in electronic purgatory, is that they are mere steps away from a crowded intersection, cars speeding by at speeds almost too fast for the eye to catch.
“But Kevin...I have figured out something about you that so many have failed to grasp; your dirty little secret that you try to hide from the world. Your smoke and mirrors? Your little monsters? It’s nothing more than a misdirection, as a magician hoping that nobody sees just how easily his facade can crumble.
And the reason you need this misdirection? The reason you rely so heavily upon it? Is because Kevin Bishop is only dangerous...if you’re not paying attention.”
As the last words echo, the camera slowly focuses on the pair, the sound of traffic and horns growing ever louder as they step forward, oblivious, towards the oncoming vehicles. Each step growing in volume like a thunderclap, until finally they approach the concrete curb. For a brief instant, the world seems to stand still, as both of them take one final fateful step.
The scene has shifted rather dramatically now, though no less familiar. A long stretch of bright, green, perfectly mowed grass ringed by a bright orange clay track. It is a football field, likely belonging to a local high school or gymnasium, as the nearby aluminum bleachers would suggest. Regardless of ownership, however, the field has been borrowed by an incredibly determined Teo Blaze. He stands in the center of the field, a rope tied around his waist. On the other end, there is a large rubber tire. He rushes forward, dragging the burden behind him, sweat beading from every pore, each step seeming to drain the life from him, but still he presses on. As he moves, a voiceover plays on the screen, his inner thoughts being revealed as he struggles with the burden.
“I know what you’re thinking. I just beat Kevin Bishop this week, with the world watching. Clean as a sheet in the middle of the ring.
What do I have left to prove? Why am I pushing myself so hard when I know that I have what it takes to beat him?”
The voiceover seems to pause, as if lost in thought. The look of exertion on Teo’s face is indescribable, as though he is racked with pain, but still he pushes through.
“Here’s the honest truth, not that I ever had any intention of speaking something different. For years, I’ve made the same mistake, over and over again. No matter how hard I train, no matter how much I push myself, I always reach this point where I become...comfortable.
Where the victories start to pile up, maybe I even get a title or two...and then it just becomes autopilot. And truth be told, I felt myself starting to get that way in Action Wrestling…
Then along comes this mysterious mask, a mask that I once wore, claiming to know who I am, defacing my property, playing mind games…
I wouldn’t have suspected Kevin Bishop, but then again...Ever since that mystery, I’ve felt this sense of unease, this sense of...doubt. Am I becoming compliant? Am I becoming comfortable? Now that I have finally claimed a World Title...do I even have to try anymore?
And then...him. That son of a bitch Kevin Bishop blindsided me right as I was on the cusp of turning everything around. Stopped me from ending the reign of Corey Black.
But I had to admit...it had an effect. I should never have allowed Kevin Bishop to get me, I should never have taken my eyes off of the ball. Kevin Bishop demonstrated to me that above all else...I still had work to do. So, in a twisted way, part of me should be thanking him.”
As Teo speaks, suddenly, he stops, unable to move the tire any further. He drops to his hands and knees, breath ragged and weary in his throat.
“So at Revolution? That’s what I am going to do. I’m going to pay him back for what he did. I’m going to give him the same lesson he gave me. I’m going to make the beating I gave him at XIII seem like a happy memory.
As much as it pains me to admit it, I’ve had more than my share of failings in Action Wrestling. The hype around my arrival? It’s been nothing but a hindrance. It slowed me down, made me believe that I was something more.
But the reason I became a champion in the first place?
Is because no matter how hard I fall. No matter how I fail…
I always get up.”
Suddenly, with a burst of adrenaline, Teo springs to life. Despite the sweat, and with a groan of noticeable exertion, he digs his heels into the grass, reaching out and digging in with fingers as well, he groans with exertion.
“I always push myself to do better.
To exceed my limits.
To accomplish the impossible!”
Teo’s feet begin stomping even faster, clawing clumps of dirt out as he grows ever closer to the end of the field, towards his goal.
“And that...that is something Kevin Bishop will never understand. No matter how many mind games he tries to play, no matter how many lies he spreads! I will never! Stop fighting! I will never stop coming for him until I have torn his illusions apart like a cheap curtain! I will expose Kevin Bishop for what he is, and show the world what it means for a monster to know fear!”
Teo’s eyes open; in the burst of adrenaline, he lost focus, and he now stands with his hands against the cold steel mesh of a worn fence. The heavy tire now sits directly behind him, and he turns towards it with a smile.
“Let Kevin Bishop bring all fear and intimidation he wants. I’m never going to be afraid of him.”
===
The screen slowly fades in to reveal the aftermath of the sound, to reveal the fateful pair’s destiny...both of them stand, eyes wide. Their legs still outstretched as if to step into the roaring traffic. On the ground, their devices lie shattered, flung from their hands. But their momentum has completely halted. For on each of their collars is a gloved hand.
Standing behind them, a dark red leather jacket over his shoulders and an ear-to-ear grin on his face, is Teo Blaze. In either hand he holds the youth’s collars, stopping them from meeting a grisly fate with only a second lying between them and oblivion.
He smiles as he speaks.
“Funny how life turns, isn’t it Kevin? How easily one little mistake can blow out of proportion? How something seemingly innocuous can quickly spiral into a tragedy?”
He pulls both of the pair back on the sidewalk, turning with a brisk step as he talks. The pair has a look of gratitude, but also confusion, as if the shock of their saved lives has yet to process in their minds.
“It seemed so harmless at the time, I’m sure. Put on a mask, record a video or two, sneak into the ring, ambush Teo Blaze, and set yourself up with a cherry little match with Corey Black. Maybe snag yourself a bit of gold in the process by setting yourself up as my conqueror.
But oh Kevin what a miscalculation you made.
Are you familiar with the term irony? Because I find it’s often misused. Kevin Bishop nearly beating Teo del Sol’s people’s title reign, only to lose to Teo’s greatest rival? That’s simply a coincidence.
Kevin Bishop trying to make a splash in Action Wrestling by attacking Teo Blaze? Now that’s ironic.
Because you see Kevin, if you had simply done nothing, this would have worked out for you so much better. You could have walked out after the match with your head held high and I would have been none the wiser as to the little games you’ve been playing.
But as I said...you made a miscalculation.
You gave me a reason.
You gave me a reason to wrap a baseball bat in barbed wire and slam it upside your head like a pinata! You gave me a reason to put all the pieces together in your little ploy. You gave me a reason to beat the shit out of you on live television!
And Kevin, let me tell you...I’ve been waiting for a reason.
Because the moment I saw the look in your eyes when you saw me on that ramp? The instant I saw you laid low, with your blood flowing like a red geyser onto that concrete? When I looked you in the eyes?
I saw fear.
I saw that you weren’t expecting this from Teo del Sol. I was supposed to be the good guy, after all! The Hero of the People! I was supposed to be someone who you could use.
But Kevin...you fucked up.
The dirty little secret that you scum-sucking mind-game playing cookie-cutter freakshows seem to keep forgetting...is that I have never called myself a hero. In fact, if we’re perfectly honest, I’ve never really cared for the label.
Because when I’m in that ring with someone like you? When I see your pissant little smug grin thinking that you have me figured out, it takes everything I have not to snap, not to drive my elbow right into your nose and keep on swinging until there’s nothing beneath me but a red paste where that very grin used to be.
And that’s why you’re afraid, Kevin. That’s why you keep saying you have me figured out, why you keep calling me a hero, or a failure, or a fraud.
Because at XIII? You got a glimpse of what I really am.
Every time you call me a hero, or a ‘shell of my former self’? It reeks of desperation. So let me go ahead and turn the tables, because Kevin, this time I’ve figured you out. You think you’re saying those things to hurt me, you think you’re saying them to expose me. But the truth is? You say them because you want them to be true.
You want to believe them. You want me to be a good guy. You need me to be a hero. A fraud. A loser.”
Teo places his hands in his pockets, and his mouth curls into a knowing grin, as though he has just heard the punchline to a particularly good joke.
“Kevin...we all choose who we are. And right now? Your head is so buried in your own delusions, your own ego...your own false beliefs…That you don’t even see the danger you’re walking into.
But you just keep walking. A would-be pied piper charmed by his own song, walking himself to oblivion.
And me..? Who knows, maybe I’ll be your hero after all...and save you from yourself.”
Teo chuckles as he pushes his glasses up the bridge of his nose.
“Of course...I never claimed to be anyone’s hero.”
Teo laughs to himself and pulls a lighter from his pocket. Absentmindedly, he flicks the top open as he walks down the street. As the scene slowly fades, the camera pans down at the fallen cell phone, cracked, broken, and crushed.
A victim of miscalculation.
The voice comes from somewhere beyond sight; as the scene slowly drifts into view, the slice of Americana that greets the viewer is that of a typical urban sidewalk on a bright and sunny day. Shoppers carry shimmering bags of purchased goods, their heads buried in cellular devices. Electronic addiction at the push of a button, the swipe of a screen.
“The life we are given? It is a precious thing. A prize more precious than any wealth...any gold...any title. The chance to live.
And with that gift..? We are given a choice.
Who do we want to be? What do we make of ourselves? What will we mold from the clay of our bodies?”
As the voice, distinctly familiar and instantly recognizable, continues speaking, the camera slowly pans towards a pair of people, a young man and woman, walking down the street. The face of each illuminated by some other electronic distraction, whether a mobile game or simply a social media update, the effect is the same. Their eyes are glued not at what is in front of them, but at the screen below.
“I’ll make no secret of our similarities. After all, we were heralded quite literally as champions of the people for a near-identical length of time. But there was always a fundamental difference, wasn’t there? To you, the people were a weapon, a shield to place in front of yourself. A pied piper luring them to a sleep of loyalty, believing the lie that was the Brotherhood until the moment it all came crashing down mere moments from history.
And ever since then, let’s face it, you’ve had to live with second place. You’ve had to live knowing that not only did you fail to break my record, you lost the People’s Championship to Jared Holmes, a man who Teo del Sol had long ago embarrassed in front of the world.
And ever since that moment..? Your failure has been an obsession. You have never managed to answer the question of why you were not able to do what Teo del Sol could, even with the world at your back, even with the entire planet under your spell.
Or so you thought.
Perhaps that’s why you attacked me. You wanted to take from me as I had taken from you. You wanted to be the one to dethrone Corey Black, and prove that you were able to do what I couldn’t. After all, it didn't make sense to you, how could someone like me be better than someone like you? A simple attack and the world would see the truth.
...Of course, we all know how that went, don’t we?”
As the voice, now easily confirmed as that of Teo Blaze, speaks, his words carrying with them the kind of coldness that can only come from years of experience, the two young walkers, heads still hanging on the neon glow of their devices, move forward in a dazed, zombie-like drudge.
“It’s always nagged at you, Kevin, the fact that you were never able to win their hearts, their loyalty. You have always ruled through one thing and one thing alone: fear. You want the world to think that you are the smart guy, that you have it all figured out. You look at the world with disgust, and its people? Simply pawns in your little game. Dreamers, walking along a path towards oblivion.”
The camera slowly pans around, the pair is walking forward, their pace non-stop, towards an intersection; but what they have failed to notice, their eyes locked in electronic purgatory, is that they are mere steps away from a crowded intersection, cars speeding by at speeds almost too fast for the eye to catch.
“But Kevin...I have figured out something about you that so many have failed to grasp; your dirty little secret that you try to hide from the world. Your smoke and mirrors? Your little monsters? It’s nothing more than a misdirection, as a magician hoping that nobody sees just how easily his facade can crumble.
And the reason you need this misdirection? The reason you rely so heavily upon it? Is because Kevin Bishop is only dangerous...if you’re not paying attention.”
As the last words echo, the camera slowly focuses on the pair, the sound of traffic and horns growing ever louder as they step forward, oblivious, towards the oncoming vehicles. Each step growing in volume like a thunderclap, until finally they approach the concrete curb. For a brief instant, the world seems to stand still, as both of them take one final fateful step.
Crash to black.
Screech of Tires.
Sound of horns.
The scene has shifted rather dramatically now, though no less familiar. A long stretch of bright, green, perfectly mowed grass ringed by a bright orange clay track. It is a football field, likely belonging to a local high school or gymnasium, as the nearby aluminum bleachers would suggest. Regardless of ownership, however, the field has been borrowed by an incredibly determined Teo Blaze. He stands in the center of the field, a rope tied around his waist. On the other end, there is a large rubber tire. He rushes forward, dragging the burden behind him, sweat beading from every pore, each step seeming to drain the life from him, but still he presses on. As he moves, a voiceover plays on the screen, his inner thoughts being revealed as he struggles with the burden.
“I know what you’re thinking. I just beat Kevin Bishop this week, with the world watching. Clean as a sheet in the middle of the ring.
What do I have left to prove? Why am I pushing myself so hard when I know that I have what it takes to beat him?”
The voiceover seems to pause, as if lost in thought. The look of exertion on Teo’s face is indescribable, as though he is racked with pain, but still he pushes through.
“Here’s the honest truth, not that I ever had any intention of speaking something different. For years, I’ve made the same mistake, over and over again. No matter how hard I train, no matter how much I push myself, I always reach this point where I become...comfortable.
Where the victories start to pile up, maybe I even get a title or two...and then it just becomes autopilot. And truth be told, I felt myself starting to get that way in Action Wrestling…
Then along comes this mysterious mask, a mask that I once wore, claiming to know who I am, defacing my property, playing mind games…
I wouldn’t have suspected Kevin Bishop, but then again...Ever since that mystery, I’ve felt this sense of unease, this sense of...doubt. Am I becoming compliant? Am I becoming comfortable? Now that I have finally claimed a World Title...do I even have to try anymore?
And then...him. That son of a bitch Kevin Bishop blindsided me right as I was on the cusp of turning everything around. Stopped me from ending the reign of Corey Black.
But I had to admit...it had an effect. I should never have allowed Kevin Bishop to get me, I should never have taken my eyes off of the ball. Kevin Bishop demonstrated to me that above all else...I still had work to do. So, in a twisted way, part of me should be thanking him.”
As Teo speaks, suddenly, he stops, unable to move the tire any further. He drops to his hands and knees, breath ragged and weary in his throat.
“So at Revolution? That’s what I am going to do. I’m going to pay him back for what he did. I’m going to give him the same lesson he gave me. I’m going to make the beating I gave him at XIII seem like a happy memory.
As much as it pains me to admit it, I’ve had more than my share of failings in Action Wrestling. The hype around my arrival? It’s been nothing but a hindrance. It slowed me down, made me believe that I was something more.
But the reason I became a champion in the first place?
Is because no matter how hard I fall. No matter how I fail…
I always get up.”
Suddenly, with a burst of adrenaline, Teo springs to life. Despite the sweat, and with a groan of noticeable exertion, he digs his heels into the grass, reaching out and digging in with fingers as well, he groans with exertion.
“I always push myself to do better.
To exceed my limits.
To accomplish the impossible!”
Teo’s feet begin stomping even faster, clawing clumps of dirt out as he grows ever closer to the end of the field, towards his goal.
“And that...that is something Kevin Bishop will never understand. No matter how many mind games he tries to play, no matter how many lies he spreads! I will never! Stop fighting! I will never stop coming for him until I have torn his illusions apart like a cheap curtain! I will expose Kevin Bishop for what he is, and show the world what it means for a monster to know fear!”
Teo’s eyes open; in the burst of adrenaline, he lost focus, and he now stands with his hands against the cold steel mesh of a worn fence. The heavy tire now sits directly behind him, and he turns towards it with a smile.
“Let Kevin Bishop bring all fear and intimidation he wants. I’m never going to be afraid of him.”
===
Fade to Black.
Screech of Tires.
Sound of horns.
Silence.
The screen slowly fades in to reveal the aftermath of the sound, to reveal the fateful pair’s destiny...both of them stand, eyes wide. Their legs still outstretched as if to step into the roaring traffic. On the ground, their devices lie shattered, flung from their hands. But their momentum has completely halted. For on each of their collars is a gloved hand.
Standing behind them, a dark red leather jacket over his shoulders and an ear-to-ear grin on his face, is Teo Blaze. In either hand he holds the youth’s collars, stopping them from meeting a grisly fate with only a second lying between them and oblivion.
He smiles as he speaks.
“Funny how life turns, isn’t it Kevin? How easily one little mistake can blow out of proportion? How something seemingly innocuous can quickly spiral into a tragedy?”
He pulls both of the pair back on the sidewalk, turning with a brisk step as he talks. The pair has a look of gratitude, but also confusion, as if the shock of their saved lives has yet to process in their minds.
“It seemed so harmless at the time, I’m sure. Put on a mask, record a video or two, sneak into the ring, ambush Teo Blaze, and set yourself up with a cherry little match with Corey Black. Maybe snag yourself a bit of gold in the process by setting yourself up as my conqueror.
But oh Kevin what a miscalculation you made.
Are you familiar with the term irony? Because I find it’s often misused. Kevin Bishop nearly beating Teo del Sol’s people’s title reign, only to lose to Teo’s greatest rival? That’s simply a coincidence.
Kevin Bishop trying to make a splash in Action Wrestling by attacking Teo Blaze? Now that’s ironic.
Because you see Kevin, if you had simply done nothing, this would have worked out for you so much better. You could have walked out after the match with your head held high and I would have been none the wiser as to the little games you’ve been playing.
But as I said...you made a miscalculation.
You gave me a reason.
You gave me a reason to wrap a baseball bat in barbed wire and slam it upside your head like a pinata! You gave me a reason to put all the pieces together in your little ploy. You gave me a reason to beat the shit out of you on live television!
And Kevin, let me tell you...I’ve been waiting for a reason.
Because the moment I saw the look in your eyes when you saw me on that ramp? The instant I saw you laid low, with your blood flowing like a red geyser onto that concrete? When I looked you in the eyes?
I saw fear.
I saw that you weren’t expecting this from Teo del Sol. I was supposed to be the good guy, after all! The Hero of the People! I was supposed to be someone who you could use.
But Kevin...you fucked up.
The dirty little secret that you scum-sucking mind-game playing cookie-cutter freakshows seem to keep forgetting...is that I have never called myself a hero. In fact, if we’re perfectly honest, I’ve never really cared for the label.
Because when I’m in that ring with someone like you? When I see your pissant little smug grin thinking that you have me figured out, it takes everything I have not to snap, not to drive my elbow right into your nose and keep on swinging until there’s nothing beneath me but a red paste where that very grin used to be.
And that’s why you’re afraid, Kevin. That’s why you keep saying you have me figured out, why you keep calling me a hero, or a failure, or a fraud.
Because at XIII? You got a glimpse of what I really am.
Every time you call me a hero, or a ‘shell of my former self’? It reeks of desperation. So let me go ahead and turn the tables, because Kevin, this time I’ve figured you out. You think you’re saying those things to hurt me, you think you’re saying them to expose me. But the truth is? You say them because you want them to be true.
You want to believe them. You want me to be a good guy. You need me to be a hero. A fraud. A loser.”
Teo places his hands in his pockets, and his mouth curls into a knowing grin, as though he has just heard the punchline to a particularly good joke.
“Kevin...we all choose who we are. And right now? Your head is so buried in your own delusions, your own ego...your own false beliefs…That you don’t even see the danger you’re walking into.
But you just keep walking. A would-be pied piper charmed by his own song, walking himself to oblivion.
And me..? Who knows, maybe I’ll be your hero after all...and save you from yourself.”
Teo chuckles as he pushes his glasses up the bridge of his nose.
“Of course...I never claimed to be anyone’s hero.”
Teo laughs to himself and pulls a lighter from his pocket. Absentmindedly, he flicks the top open as he walks down the street. As the scene slowly fades, the camera pans down at the fallen cell phone, cracked, broken, and crushed.
A victim of miscalculation.