act eleven: memories for the future
It's interesting, the way that this business of ours works. Friends and enemies, allies and competition... for such a physical career, we find ourselves heavily based in emotion. It takes determination to start a rivalry, anger to breed enemies, trust to bring about friends, respect to show us our allies... the list goes on and on. For every action we take in the NLCW, there is a driving emotion behind it to give us the motivation to move forward. Some of us fight for the glory, for the honor and the respect it all brings. Still others fight for the money, for the fame, for the personal gain from it all. Some out of love for the sport or the love for another, others still just because it's all they know in this life.
No matter your reason, there's almost always an emotion to go with it. Emotions are what drive we as humans forward more than anything else, they're what spawn dreams and allow their eventual fulfillment. They're what build bridges with one hand and tear them down with another and, in many ways, are far more powerful than we will ever be.
A lot of what I've done has been driven by emotion, personally. My decisions in this life, my planning and my career paths... all of it driven by a desire for a better life-- not just for me, mind you, but for Suki. For my parents. For my family, both present and future. For my friends, old and new, and for those still yet to be met along the way. When I think of what I want to do in this life of mine, in the career I've made out of what I do... I want to use what I have to touch those around me, to share these emotions of mine with them by trying to help them in their own struggles.
Fact of the matter is, we're all emotionally driven people. Wrestlers put on the tough persona, the macho bravado... but regardless of what we say or what we do, we're all driven by the things we feel.
Madison Kave wishes to make friends with me, she wants to give me the respect that many newcomers to this place fail to give. She wants a challenge, she wants to have fun... she's not out there for the glory or the feeling of empowerment it gives her, she's out there for the competition, for the thrill of the fight. She's out there because she wants to fight with the best of us, not because she wants to beat the best of us. She's made it all too clear, winning isn't the issue here... it's how you go about trying to gain that victory in the first place.
I've yet to study her in-ring abilities, I've yet to even speak directly to the woman, and already I respect her much, much more than some people I've known here for years. Isn't that something?
Granted, her free-spirit shows through rather strongly in her expressed desire to light one up with me after the match and relax, but that's not necessarily a bad thing by any means... Lord knows Champion's drunken antics of the past would have done me in had I been so stuck up as to be intolerable of them. Still, to clear the air on that particular matter, I must say this: I'm a father, Madison, I can't be smokinng when I have a kid! Then again, I wouldn't be smoking in the first place, it's never really done it for me.
But you do as you will, have fun and enjoy yourself. If Frank Merritt can make it fashionable to be a frighteningly massive tank of destruction ran entirely by the power of weed alone, I'm sure your party mentality will be accepted by the rest of us.
I'll be watching out for you, Madison... I'll be expecting great things for these words you've spoken. You seem like a tough kid, someone who's sure of themselves without being arrogant enough to underestimate those who stand against them. You know the challenge you're about to face and you're saying you'll be standing your ground, win or lose... and I greatly respect you for that.
As you want and as I'd intended to in the first place, I won't be taking you lightly. When I go out there, I'll be giving you my concentrated effort because I know you'll expect nothing less from someone such as myself. I want you to challenge me as your words have challenged me, because while I'm unfortunately certain of my impeding victory, as I have been with all opponents of my past thus far, I do indeed believe that you can push me harder than any of them have.
I say this because you're the first person to step up before me with a similar mentality, a similar belief... you'll be the first to give a concentrated effort to give me your best, rather than yet another person giving me a desperate effort to prove their bravado going into the match as being worthwhile. Stacy Jones has a superiority complex, for example, and refuses to see the talent in others. She believes herself to be the best in the face of consistent failure, making excuses and backpedalling over previous statements... truth be told, she's much like a female version of Carmine Vestieri.
A lot about her has changed since the first time we'd fought, and none of those things were for the better.
Tyler Scott, Alex Jay, the Mask of William... everyone I've faced since this return of mine, and almost all of them have either had their focus drawn elsewhere or have underestimated me, believing me to somehow be past my prime in the face of the path I've carved through this place thus far. You are the first who sees my capability without compensating against it with ego, you are the first who admits to the challenge ahead of you without resorting to childish insults to reassure yourself of your perceived dominance in the situation.
You're the first honest challenger I've had since my return.
I think I'm going to like you, Madison... I think you'll be a favorite of mine around these parts from now on. You show a desire to better yourself and meet the best of your potential, and in what little time I've had to get to know you from a distance, I find myself approving of you as an opponent in record time. Give me your best, that's all I can ask for. Always give your best, honestly... it's the only way you'll be able to push yourself forward. Have faith in your abilities, believe in what you can do, and always push forward to gain what you've yet to attain.
From this point forward, I'll be making it back to Avulsion on a weekly basis... match or no match. With the NLCW finally taking me off of my return tour, I'll be able to get back on television for more than just matches again, and a part of me is very excited to have a pay-per-view kick that off. I know you won't disappoint me, Madison... so I'll just let you know that I'm excited for our match. I know you'll be out there to give a good impression, and I know that you'll be capable of doing just that.
So good luck, Madison... while I don't foresee you taking this title from me, I do at least know you'll put in one hell of an effort.
See you Sunday, kiddo.