Post by Alice Harris on Feb 11, 2016 18:47:10 GMT -5
"They say that history is written by the victors and they have a point... How often do you hear the losing side's version of events?"
Alice is sat there in a clearing in the middle of the woods, much like the one where her and Fenrir trained together when they had their brief alliance. Sitting there with her knife, idly throwing it into a broken log in front of her and waiting for it to stick, point first into what was once probably a decent sized tree, she continues to verbalize her thoughts.
"It's everywhere... In the bible the first king of Israel was panned because he was from an unpopular sect of the 12 tribes yet kings David and Solomon could do no wrong... Catholicism talks about how it suppressed the threat of the east during the crusades, but it often wretches or tries to vehemently deny the atrocities it committed against the locals... You may wonder why I bring these two extremes up, and it's simple - when we look back all we see is a lousy monarch or a valiant defense against an incredible force."
The knife finally sticks into the log.
"Meltdown will be no different... All the record books will show is that Rocky Hollywood secured a win for his team by defeating the NAW Legacy Champion, Alice Harris by pinfall... Unless you find footage of the match, you won't see how Rocky bided his time, how he let the rest of his team do the leg work for him, how he only took his opportunities and looked to try and gain an advantage before a big match... The record books won't show how he turned up at the 11th hour to save his team, his unit of allies, his agents for their cause... They will only show that he won and I lost..."
Reaching out, Alice snatches the knife out of the log and starts twirling it around in her fingers as she continues to speak.
"Much like he maintains I only defeated him by sheer luck at the year in review show. What he forgets is that unless you look past the statistic and see the proof, the evidence, the sources... It was a hard fought and close match where ultimately, I secured a narrow victory... But a victory none the less..."
Throwing the knife again, Alice watches it clatter off the log before picking it up and going again.
"I mean, since that match, all Rocky has done is whinge and complain about how I got lucky. He seems to forget how much effort it took him to take me to the wire, only to fall short... That has to dent an ego, so naturally, like anyone who has a complex about themselves, they gloss over anything which paints them in a bad light.. Like being unable to beat me in a clean, fair one on one and focus soley on trying to detract from my ability to make up for their ineptness..."
Once again, the knife clatters off the log.
"But this is the difference... See, I am upset that I couldn't pin you and eliminate you, but I'm not going to dwell on it, purely because I knew going into this match, we were up against it... To some, I am the most loved and hated person in this company. I'm loved by the fans and those in the back who respect my ability and admire my tenacity... But because I am the Legacy Champion, the woman who took NAW by the balls, the woman who tore the rule book to pieces and wrote a new one... Where talent comes before reputation... Or where it used to anyway... I have a target on my back which means I really don't have any allies, brothers and sisters in arms... Comrades... I am the lone wolf now and when you put a lone wolf in with a different pack, it never works out...
Myself, Trent and the Jeckels, we were all aware we were up against it and we fought with everything we had, but I have to hand it to you and the rest of Alice and Alejandro's goons - you worked well as a team and you got the job done. I applaud you for beating a makeshift alliance built solely on individual targets as opposed to a united front with one clear objective... But again, history won't pay much attention to that... History will just show Alice remained upbeat despite her loss to Rocky and his team... It won't say how she was humble in defeat, it won't say how she didn't whinge, complain, make a huge scene out of it or any other shit the likes of you, Erin or any other self-centred bitch in this place thinks... It will just say that my team lost and your team won... Much like at the Massacre... It will simply say one of us won and one of us lost... A title was either retained or changed hands... Only if you scratch the surface will you really find out what happened...."
Myself, Trent and the Jeckels, we were all aware we were up against it and we fought with everything we had, but I have to hand it to you and the rest of Alice and Alejandro's goons - you worked well as a team and you got the job done. I applaud you for beating a makeshift alliance built solely on individual targets as opposed to a united front with one clear objective... But again, history won't pay much attention to that... History will just show Alice remained upbeat despite her loss to Rocky and his team... It won't say how she was humble in defeat, it won't say how she didn't whinge, complain, make a huge scene out of it or any other shit the likes of you, Erin or any other self-centred bitch in this place thinks... It will just say that my team lost and your team won... Much like at the Massacre... It will simply say one of us won and one of us lost... A title was either retained or changed hands... Only if you scratch the surface will you really find out what happened...."
Picking the knife up one last time, Alice throws it and it finds its mark again.
"The way I see this, I'm not walking into that show to compete in a one on one with a referee who is familiar to us both... No... I am walking into a 6 on 1. I am walking in as the lamb, heading under my own free will to happily be slaughtered at the hands of you, your alliance, Vincent Alejandro and Alice White... I am going in there with the thought in the back of my mind constantly saying that you've been set up here Alice... They had no intention of allowing you to succeed... "
Looking round at the clearing, Alice spots something lying at the base of a tree. It's a rusted battle axe. Walking towards it, she kneels down in front of it and carefully removes it from its resting place. Holding it in her hands, she gets a feel for the balance of the weapon and a faint smile forms on her face.
"Everyone loves a rising star... An underdog... Someone who goes against the grain... That one person who goes left when everyone else goes right... The person who is not afraid to go their own way, to live their life on their terms and to do the things they want to do and not what people want them to do... It makes for compelling viewing and for ratings... It allows an emotional investment to form so people get more and more drawn to them... It makes them the focal point, the rising star, the one tipped for great things so they get thrust into the spotlight ahead of their time so to speak... Only they don't buckle under the pressure... No, they rise to it. They embrace the challenge, they learn from the mistakes and keep pushing, making sure not to be overlooked anymore and soon enough, something has to give... And the underdog goes and does it... The underdog defies the odds, shocks the world, scores the big win and then suddenly, no one cares about anything else, it's literally just them and them alone..."
Holding the Axe firmly in her hands, Alice takes a few swings with it, getting a feel for the weapon Fenrir used to love training with so much.
"And what happens? The thing which brought so much spotlight and success is soon the envy of everyone and everything. Their downfall is plotted... Like Caesar, the great conqueror of Ancient Europe, stabbed in the back by those who he trusted... Alice White gave me a chance... I took it, I grasped it with both hands and every night I went out into that ring, I made damn sure not to make her regret having faith in me..."
Twirling the axe, Alice swings it horizontally and buries the head of it into a tree.
"And she didn't. She gave me chance upon chance, rewarded me for my dedication with a shot at greatness which I achieved... Vincent Alejandro, the man for the network with his own agenda could see that waging a war against the popular girl who just didn't know when to give up saw the dollar signs when he realized if he played his cards right, he could make more money than ever off of the back of this... So he did... He gave me opposition, he knew I would defend Alice White and he knew that by convincing her to see things from his way would undermine me somehow...
Well Vincent... It may have isolated me, it may have made me angry, made me disappointed, made me look at things differently.. But what you seem to be forgetting, along with Jason and his brother, along with Rocky and his pet cat Christopher and anyone else who doubted me... Is that you created this..."
Well Vincent... It may have isolated me, it may have made me angry, made me disappointed, made me look at things differently.. But what you seem to be forgetting, along with Jason and his brother, along with Rocky and his pet cat Christopher and anyone else who doubted me... Is that you created this..."
Alice looks over to where she was originally sat. Besides her bag of belongings is the mask Corey Bull left her.
"I always had the talent, I just needed the chance to show I could use it... I was given that chance and now you're trying to take it all away from me... Unfortunately it doesn't quite work like that... I will, no matter what happens still be the best damn athlete in NAW... Whether I overcome the odds, raise my middle fingers in victory to you and the schemers who fall in line with you as Corey Bull holds my arm high in victory or whether I give it all but go down fighting in a blaze of glory, giving hope to those who have the ability but need the chance to get into the spotlight... I will stand tall at the end of the day and prove that sometimes, there can be victory in defeat...
If Rocky does it... Beats me again... History will reflect that as the day he became the Legacy Champion and I lost the title in my first defense... But it will also reflect that as the day when everyone in NAW, every fan who attends the shows, every fan who watches at home, every fan who posts on the forums, who tweets about the show as it happens live... Every single person will rise in support of me because they want to see someone like Rocky fail..."
If Rocky does it... Beats me again... History will reflect that as the day he became the Legacy Champion and I lost the title in my first defense... But it will also reflect that as the day when everyone in NAW, every fan who attends the shows, every fan who watches at home, every fan who posts on the forums, who tweets about the show as it happens live... Every single person will rise in support of me because they want to see someone like Rocky fail..."
Alice walks towards her original spot and retrieves the mask.
"Someone once told me it was their time to go because NAW didn't need them anymore... That they were waiting for someone to take up the torch and light the way... So far, I have done that, I have been a beacon of hope for those who desperately want their chance to shine and I have been a beacon for those who want to make their name by riding my coat tails... Should I taste defeat later this month, the torch won't pass to Rocky or Alice White or Vincent or anyone... It will remain in my hands because I am the one who has the interests of all at heart... I am the one who will stand against those looking to only further themselves... I am the one who stands there, the light in the darkness, the shield which defends the realm... I stand alone so that others do not have to..."
Running her fingers across the grilled mouth piece, Alice closes her eyes for a moment.
"The burden of being a champion is not something everyone can bear. I bear it so those who cannot do not feel crushed under its weight.... Vincent... Alice... You seem to be putting an awful lot of faith in Rocky... Do you honestly believe he is the person you can put your faith in? The person who can be everything you need him to be? Say he does win the title... Then what? He dissolves his alliance because he got what he wanted out of it... He betrays you Vincent because you're not needed anymore because he got to the top and soon enough, when him and his kitty cat pal decide to go for the tag titles which the Jason's believe Alice White is getting them, he'll betray you too Alice...
Rocky is a man who is only in this for himself because he cannot abide failure. His ego is so fragile that the very thought of losing cuts him to the bone... He lost to me and how did he handle it? By letting everyone else do the dirty work for him, only stepping up properly when he absolutely had to..."
Rocky is a man who is only in this for himself because he cannot abide failure. His ego is so fragile that the very thought of losing cuts him to the bone... He lost to me and how did he handle it? By letting everyone else do the dirty work for him, only stepping up properly when he absolutely had to..."
Alice holds the mask in both hands and looks into the eye holes of it before closing her eyes once again.
"Unfortunately Rocky, you're going to have to step up to this one alone... Whether you like it or not, you're going to have to contend with not just me... But Corey Bull... A man who takes no shit... If you try to sneak round him, he will catch you and you will be punished for it... He will make damn sure you have to fight me on equal footing because face it... The odds are always against me... And I know that despite the unfinished business between us, Corey will call it straight down the middle... The question is... After he has called it... What does he do to you then? Believe me... It will be a hell of a lot worse than what I can do to you Rocky...."
Looking over her shoulder to the axe in the tree, then to the knife in the log before finally looking to the mask in her hands, Alice smiles.
"History is written by the victors Rocky... And I still have plenty to write"