Post by Rated R on Aug 6, 2015 2:28:06 GMT -5
Hitori Dojo
Osaka, Japan
July 24th 2015
There’s a lot of things people don’t know about me, and even more things people don’t know if they haven’t trawled through my wiki page. And who would, really? Who’s got the time to waste on reading entire pages worth of information that doesn’t really matter about anything? Nobody important, that’s for sure.
Anyway, getting side tracked. Like I was saying, there’s a lot people don’t know about me, especially newcomers to the sport. Take for instance the fact that when I started out wrestling I wasn’t much more than a brawler. A damn good one, sure, but brawling and smashing people with various hardware was basically my entire repertoire. I barely even bothered locking up if I could help it. It wasn’t really until I got the call up from the house show circuit that I realized I had to branch out, that I had to become more than just someone who could throw a mean right hook. So where did I go to learn how to wrestle like I was possessed by Strong Style itself? The only place worth going.
Japan. The Hitori Dojo to be precise.
Heiji Hitori: No damn it, hit harder, you’d never win like that!
I haven’t been back here in nigh on four years, but I’ve kept in touch with Heiji sporadically since then. The guy’s getting into his fifties now and he’s got a real Mr. Miyagi thing about him but don’t let that fool you; he’s still one of the toughest sons of bitches I’ve ever met.
Heiji Hitori: Hook the leg, no tighter! Wrench it till he taps or his leg snaps, whichever comes first!
He’s not speaking English obviously; I’m just translating for all you idiots who don’t speak fluent Japanese like yours truly. I mean what wrestler with any respect for the industry doesn’t know Japanese? Well probably Yukio Blaze, but he doesn’t know how to tie his shoelaces so that’s not really a good answer.
Trace Demon: Heiji you old bastard, you’ve not lightened up one bit.
He’s a little bit surprised to see me, understandable given that he had no idea I was coming. I’ve got a tendency to forget to call ahead on these kind of things, busy man and all. Also I don’t care. I can tell he’s happy I’ve dropped in though.
Heiji Hitori: Who in their right mind let you in here?
He just hides his happiness really well. It’s a Japanese elder thing.
Trace Demon: Come on, you’re happy to see me. I know you’re happy to see me. I can see it in the fake look of disappointment in your eyes.
Heiji Hitori: Take a break everyone; we’re not getting anything done until this fool leaves the building.
Trace Demon: See, I knew you were happy to see me, wanting one on one time with your greatest success story.
He shakes his head as I smirk, laying on the arrogance a little thick just to annoy the old man. Yes, I’m self-aware sometimes; I just don’t like to make a big deal of it. As the trainees of the dojo disperse away from the ring Heiji takes a seat beside it. I perch on its edge, remembering my training from years back and the many times that I got kicked in the face here. Good times.
Heiji Hitori: You’re Japanese has improved.
Trace Demon: I’ve slept with a lot of Asian girls, what can I say.
Heiji Hitori: You’re attitude has not.
Trace Demon: Again, Asian girls, they’re a bad influence.
He shakes his head but I can see the faintest hint of a grin. A lot of the trainees you get through these doors are highly respectful of the Japanese wrestling culture and their attitude follows suit. In short they’re boring as hell. I think he enjoyed having someone walk through that door who could break the monotony of it all.
Heiji Hitori: Saké?
Trace Demon: I’d love to pretend that I don’t know that has alcohol in it and accept the offer, but I’m gonna have to decline. Still sober.
Heiji Hitori: Ah yes, you have undergone a lot of changes since stepping foot in my dojo all those years ago. You came here as an arrogant, reckless, good for nothing and now… well not a lot has changed, but you haven’t died young so that is quite the achievement.
Trace Demon: I’m still young! Wait, why am I arguing the whole not dead thing?
He chuckles to himself, I never saw him laugh when I was training here but I know now that the tough old man act is a bit of a front. He wants the best out of his students and to get the best you’ve got to make sure they know that you know more than they do, and intimidating them into silence is a good way of doing that. Sometimes you got to do things that don’t seem all that nice to get results for the good of the many, that’s a life lesson I’ve taken in stride.
Heiji Hitori: Because you argue against everything Demon-San, you have no desire to agree with anything unless it was your idea.
Trace Demon: That is not true.
Heiji Hitori: You are constantly argumentative.
Trace Demon: I’m very agreeable damn it, I’m… okay, I kind of see your point.
I’ve been Miyagi’d.
Heiji Hitori: But I admit, you are not the young man who came through those doors all those years ago with nothing more than a big mouth and a stiff right hand. I taught you well-
Trace Demon: I’m sure you once told me only the fools boasts about himself.
Heiji Hitori: As I was trying to say before your constant need for attention interrupted, I taught you well but you have grown into yourself since leaving me. I have followed your career closely Demon san, you have done well.
Trace Demon: Four World Championships across multiple companies, a hall of fame ring, owning two wrestling companies and a dozen other ventures, yeah, “done well” might be an understatement.
Heiji Hitori: Do I look like a man who has any interest in your physical achievements? No, your titles and your money mean nothing to me because they are not my own, they do me no good. I am talking about that young woman you have found yourself teaming with.
I feel sometimes that escaping from the WFWF would be a lot easier if I stopped associating with so many people involved in wrestling. Problem being that I hate people, and the only reason I talk to the ones I do is because I’m obligated to by monetary needs.
Heiji Hitori: When you first came here you were hopeless, not because of a lack of ability, you were always talented. You picked up on things much swifter than the others, but your ego, your stubbornness, your inability to trust others; those are the things that held you back. Those are the reasons I was always so hard on you, I thought that if I pushed you, if I tried to break you then you would realize the futility in the way you lived. I knew that if you could achieve that, if you could see the value in respecting the business and the people around you then you would truly be something great.
Why do I have a feeling he’s not about to say I did that?
Heiji Hitori: You never did that.
That’s why.
ing Miyagi’d again. Wait, am I using that term I completely made up correctly? I’m sure I am, yeah, course.
Heiji Hitori: If anything you went completely against everything I tried to teach you, as if you listened to none of it.
Trace Demon: I can safely say I probably didn’t.
Heiji Hitori: You spent years using people, trusting nobody but yourself. You turned on every person who placed their trust in you. I am surprised at your success Demon san, not because of a lack of talent but because of how you throw people aside as if they mattered so little to you. You may believe that my friend, you may see people as disposable, but do you not see that you’re greatest success in life, your family, comes only out of trust. If you placed that trust, and that respect, in someone who stands beside you in that ring then maybe you would find a success of a wholly new degree.
Trace Demon: Is there a degree above what I’ve managed? I really don’t think there is.
Heiji Hitori: Let me put it in a way you might understand. A soldier can never achieve the same as an army, and you cannot achieve all that you hope to solely on the strength of your own shoulders. You use others not because you see them as tools, but because you needed them to do what you could not do alone. But people remember, and they recognise the trait of betrayal within a person. You turn your back one too many time and you will soon find nobody willing to face you eye to eye. And when that time comes you will very quickly find yourself unable to achieve anything.
Trace Demon: This is getting way too deep.
Heiji Hitori: You wish to be a success, you wish to be a great champion, yet you have never defended your treasured World Championship successfully. Your success is borderline and it is your own egotism that holds you back. Accept that trust and respect is not a weakness; know that the greatest soldiers were even greater because of the men that made up their army. A general is swiftly struck down if he has no men to fight alongside him. And you Demon san, if you do not accept this and change sooner rather than later, will soon find yourself with nowhere to turn to when you need a so called “tool”.
He rises from his seat, pats me on my shoulder. I’ve been far too Miyagi’d to bat it away out of disgust.
Heiji Hitori: See my boy, I told you once that I would never be done teaching you. It turns out I was right.
I’m never watching the Karate Kid again.
Trace Demon Presents
Saint Demon
A Trace Demon Roleplay
You Don’t Know Anything; Part 3 of 3
< *** >
Tokyo Dome
Tokyo, Japan
July 27th 2015
It took some serious effort to kick everyone out of the Dome, but it was worth it for this sight. I like to check out the arena before each show, to get a feel for the building, to get my thoughts together, and usually I let the guys go about their s**t while I do it, maybe make some small talk, play the interested boss. But not here, not today, not at the Tokyo Dome.
Anyone who knows anything about wrestling knows about the Tokyo Dome, and anyone with at least some respect for the business knows that this is holy ground right here. You don’t come to wrestle at Tokyo Dome and see this as just another wrestling match. That isn’t how it works. Tokyo Dome is the kind of arena that every single would-be wrestler should aspire to wrestle in. Every single great in this business has appeared here, and every future legend seeks to stand in this very ring surrounded by a horde of people craving real wrestling.
Because that’s what makes places like the Tokyo Dome and Madison Square Garden so special. It’s the fans, it’s the people that come out knowing full well exactly what it means to be in that building. Now there isn’t much love lost between me and the fans, I’m not gonna lie, and I’m not gonna pretend that I give a damn what they think of me, but that doesn’t mean I don’t recognise there’s a certain selection, the type that show up to the Dome for instance, who have a bit of sense in their limited scope of thought.
See there’s a certain kind of fan who show up to shows like this, and it isn’t the usual inbred hick we get when we run a place like Texas. No, the people who come to the Dome want wrestling, real wrestling. They’re not here for any of Hollywood Unhinged’s fake ass brand of acting like wrestlers, they’re not here to sit in awe of Tugarin Zmey’s size, they’re not interested in watching Samael Ahriman pretend to know what he’s doing. No, these people want real wrestling, they want to see people go to war inside the ring, put everything they’ve got and everything they are into their match just for the chance of coming out victorious.
Basically, they come here to watch people like me.
That’s why I, I mean we, already have an advantage going into this tournament final. Tugarin Zmey’s never stepped foot in the Tokyo Dome and when he done he’s going to realize that nobody here gives a crap about how much of a freak he is. I’m not intimidated, Nikki’s gonna keep fighting even if she is and these people just don’t give a damn. Drakz has wrestled around the world, sure, but he’s entering a world that doesn’t care about how much he can talk and all the antics he can get up to. These people don’t give a crap about any of that unless you can wrestle. Got to give the man credit, he can wrestle, he’s one of the few guys who’ve beaten me recently…
It’s hard not to let my thoughts run away with themselves when I think about that. The number of times I’ve lost over the past three years are few, the times I’ve lost one on one are even fewer. Twice in fact, both to Drakz. Once fair and square I’ll give him, but the last time it was purely down to that crazy bastard Philly Schneider.
I lie back in the ring, staring up at the roof of Tokyo Dome. This is the only time I intend to be looking up at those lights for a prolonged period any time soon.
So yeah, Drakz can wrestle, but he’s not on my level, not when it comes to pure, strong style wrestling, the kind these people love. If Drakz and Tugarin are smart, and I’ve got my doubts about the latter, then they’ll be expecting a war, but they probably won’t be expecting to walk into an arena filled with fans cheering my name. And they will be cheering my name, because I’m exactly the man they’ve come out to watch. They won’t be expecting it, and they’re gonna have to find a way to handle that, and that’s just one more distraction, one more problem they’ve got to deal with, just one more reason they’re going to lose. Add it to the list.
This is Tokyo Dome, this place is a kingdom in the world of professional wrestling. And I… I just so happen to be a king.
< *** >
HER Apartment
July 28th 2015
This was a surprise.
?: You’re still not drinking, right?
Trace Demon: No, still sober.
Quite the surprise in fact.
?: Right on.
Of all the phone calls I was expecting to get out here in Japan this wasn’t one of them, and I’ve got to admit I wasn’t exactly sure about coming here. What if her whole goal here was to get me here and then repeatedly stab me with a self-made shank carved out of a heh? I mean sure the chances of someone trying to murder you with a heh-shank twice in one lifetime is pretty slim, but it could happen.
?: This is kind of weird, y’know?
Trace Demon: Yeah, I’d say, wasn’t exactly planning on seeing you any time soon Scarlett.
Scarlett Quinn, former WFWF World Heavyweight Champion and my former protégé in many ways. We had a good relationship, she was like family at one point, until of course I broke her in two to get hold of that title. A lot of people see it as my darkest moment, the one that proves I don’t have a soul. I see it as my proudest, because I was at the top of the mountain and I don’t care how I got there, the fact was that I was there.
I have no regrets.
Scarlett Quinn: Bet you’re wondering why I called you.
Trace Demon: No, I wonder whether I could ever make it in the porn industry. I’m completelying baffled as to why you called me. There’s a big difference.
Scarlett Quinn: Why do you always have to make everything into some big sarcastic joke?
Trace Demon: Why do you automatically assume I’m being sarcastic?
She chuckles, seemingly unperturbed by the fact that she is currently sharing the room with the very man who broke her body, broke her spirit and, until recent events, broke up her very special friendship with Miss Shannon. She leans back in her seat, a battered thing that she must of gotten from a flea market. The entire apartment screams hipster chic, which I suppose is unsurprising given that Scarlett Quinn is very much the embodiment of that very unflattering trend.
Scarlett Quinn: Because you’re either lying or hiding the truth behind sarcasm or wit, that’s your style.
Trace Demon: Look who’s gotten smart.
Scarlett Quinn: I’ve just learnt to think for myself. Probably got something to do with being away from mom and dad. And you.
Trace Demon: You never let anyone think for you Scar, you just let yourself hear the things you wanted to hear. None of what happened would have come as a surprise if you’d paid attention. I mean even Wayne saw it coming, whether he wants to admit it or not. He warned me off but he didn’t do anything because he wanted to think that you had it in control.
Scarlett Quinn: I thought I did too.
There’s an awkward silence, which comes as no surprise. What was she really expecting to get out of this? Closure? Closure is a lie, there’s no such thing in real life.
Scarlett Quinn: I’ve been speaking to Penny again recently; she told me you’ve changed, that you’ve actually helped Nikki out a couple times. That you’re showing people respect which I’m guessing is not something that comes easy to you.
Trace Demon: I’m doing what’s good for my chances in the tournament. Can’t win the tag team titles without a tag team partner. It’s kind of in the name.
Scarlett Quinn: When did you ever care about the tag team titles? You once told me that being in a tag team was a way of admitting you can’t get anything done on your own.
The problem with being right all the time is that eventually someone uses that against you.
Trace Demon: What can I say, I got bored of winning all the time so I thought I’d put myself at a handicap with this whole random tournament thing. Who knew I’d get a semi-competent tag partner?
Scarlett Quinn: I don’t think you even convinced yourself with that one.
Trace Demon: I didn’t come here to have you question my sudden desire to not hurt every single person I meet. I came here because I was curious about why you called me out of the blue.
Scarlett Quinn: Well that one’s easy; I just got tired of hating you. It’s exhausting, properly hating someone, especially when that someone is just doing the only thing they know how to do. So I decided I’d stop, figured the best way to beat you was to show you that you didn’t break me, that I’m still alive and kicking and making something of myself. That was enough for me, I could of gone my whole life without seeing you again, but then Penny told me all about how you seem to be turning over a new leaf and I had to see it for myself because I just couldn’t believe it.
Trace Demon: Satisfied by what you see then?
She shrugs her shoulders, undecided.
Scarlett Quinn: Not sure exactly. Something’s different, can’t quite put my finger on what it is. I’m not even sure if it’s good or bad exactly. But there’s something in your eyes, your brains ticking differently, just wish I could see exactly what it was thinking.
Trace Demon: Trust me Scarlett; you don’t want to see what’s in my head. It’d Mountains of Madness the crap out of you.
Scarlett Quinn: Probably, but part of me wants to believe that whatever it is that drives you, maybe it’s capable of doing something good. Nobody can be one hundred per cent evil can they.
Trace Demon: Go back to the 1940’s and tell the Jews that.
That kills the conversation dead, as most holocaust jokes tend to do.
Scarlett Quinn: It’s not my opinion of you that matters Trace. You’re a dad now, think of Eliza and ask yourself what she’s going to think when she looks back at your career and sees all the horrible things you’ve done. Ask yourself whether she’ll be boasting about the fact that her dad nearly crippled someone he used to call family. Like do you honestly believe that she’s going to see all that and be proud of you?
Who gave her the right to go away and learn life lessons?
Scarlett Quinn: When I look at my parents I see that they fought for what they believed in and they fought to win, they did it for the most part with honour and respect for their friends. They stood by people, they put their faith in each other and their friends and people did the same with them because they earned it. I’m still fighting today because I know that’s what they did. I might have built my own life but it’s built on what I learned from them. So really Trace ask yourself.
What is Eliza going to learn from you?
< *** >
Macon Police Department
Macon, Atlanta
August 2nd 2015
I don’t know what it is about this week, but every time I answer my phone recently I seem to get some kind of unexpected invite. The first of course was dear little Scarlett Quinn and her failed lesson in ethics. As if she really believes she can sway my game plan. No, not when we’re this far in. Speaking of the plan, this very unexpected phone call pushes things along nicely. I can’t say I saw this coming exactly, I knew something was going to explode between the two of them given the history, but still I thought she had a little more sense. Ah, here she comes now.
Trace Demon: Hello partner. Well, jumpsuits certainly don’t flatter you do they.
Nikki Dean: What are you doing here, Trace?
She seems just as surprised to see me as I was to get the call, but it pays to be the boss. The guy at the desk couldn’t get through to our old pal Josh so he went to the next best thing, WFWF’s central office. There’s a reason I only hire people I trust to run the front desk, the moment our front desk got that call she was patching it straight through to me rather than Josh. Again, that’s the boss’s privilege
Trace Demon: Nikki, haven’t you heard that things get back to me?
Nikki Dean: Yeah, I heard you were big on espionage.
Trace Demon: I’m insulted Nikki.
I make sure to look like I’ve got hurt feelings. It’s tough, pretending I give a crap to such a degree that I could even feel hurt by her distrust. Then again I’ve always been a very good actor.
Trace Demon: It makes me wonder why I’m even here right now, spending my own cash to bail you out of this mess you’re in.
Nikki Dean: I’m thinking it has something to do with our title match.
Trace Demon: Well maybe I wanted to see if the boy is alright. I’ve got a soft spot for family.
I’ll be honest with you, that’s less of a lie than I’d like to let on. I’m capable of sympathy, especially for a child who is being dragged through hell because of the sins of their parent. I know all too well how that feels.
Nikki Dean: He’s fine. You don’t have to act so concerned.
Trace Demon: I’m not acting Nikki. He’s a child, one that’s scared out of his mind right now.
Nikki Dean: And he has the support he needs.
She says it with some serious vitriol, certainly not pleased that I’m questioning her ability to take care of her own kid. I’m not questioning that though, I know she’d do anything for her son, it’s one of the things I like about the girl, but all the fight in the world doesn’t always keep the wolves from the door.
Nikki Dean: Where can I change?
She calms it when addressing the officer who’s just handed her her clothes and then unlocks the handcuffs that have been cutting into her wrists.
Officer James: The bathroom in the waiting room. Since we’ve already processed your release you’re free to go afterward.
Trace Demon: You heard the man, get dressed. We’ve got things to do.
Nikki Dean: Not before you answer some questions.
Trace Demon: Nikki, I don’t have time to play games with you right now. I flew out here from Japan. I’ve had no sleep in two days and I’ve got a jet waiting to fly me right back out there the moment I’m done with you. So go and get changed or I’ll take you home in full orange if that’s what you want.
Nikki Dean: I’m not going anywhere with you until I know I’m safe. I’ll call my dad if I have to and miss the pay per view.
Trace Demon: Look, you’re safe alright, I don’t get anything out of hurting you so why would I bother. I’ll answer whatever questions you want but I’m not doing it in this place.
Officer James: You really have to move along ma’am.
She looks hesitant, unsure, but she doesn’t want to risk starting an argument with the police officer so she resigns herself to following my direction.
Nikki Dean: Fine, but as soon as I’m dressed I want answers.
Trace Demon: Whatever you say.
She hesitates again before giving in completely, heading for the washroom.
Trace Demon: Do me a favour and send her outside when she’s done.
I don’t wait around to hear the office complain that he’s not the receptionist. I get out of there as quickly as possible, the place makes me feel trapped and I’m not even in lockup. I hang around for several minutes, wishing I hadn’t quit smoking so I had something to pass the time, before Nikki comes out.
Trace Demon: Well that’s a much better look.
Nikki Dean: Cut the crap. You promised me answers.
Trace Demon: So impatient Nikki, a thank you would have been a nice start. Alright then, what is it exactly that you want to know?
Nikki Dean: I want to know why you’ve gone out of your way to protect me these past few months?
Trace Demon: What kind of stupid question is that?
Nikki Dean: One that I expect an honest answer to. It’s no secret you don’t like anyone I associate with, so why in the hell are you sticking your neck out for me?
Trace Demon: The same reason I do most things, because I want to win.
Nikki Dean: I’m not buying it. You don’t want to be tag team champion, you just couldn’t quit because you don’t like looking weak.
The girl’s a lot smarter than I gave her credit for. Still not smart enough to see where it’s all going, but still, credit where credit is due.
Trace Demon: What’s your point exactly?
Nikki Dean: That you could of just let Kyzer and Ante take me out of action and you would have had an out. You could of let me rot in that cell and you would have had an out. You’re not helping me because you want to win, you’re not even helping yourself because if you were you wouldn’t be helping me full stop. So tell me Trace, why are you helping me?
Trace Demon: This is pointless.
Nikki Dean: Stop, just cut the crap for once and tell me!
Trace Demon: Because you’re better than you think you are, alright? Because I see something in you that nobody else sees. Not the fans, not Penny or Demento, not even Josh. That isn’t Josh’s kid so he doesn’t understand the fight and the drive it takes to protect a kid, and I can see that you’d give your life to protect yours. You’ve got the potential to be something great because you’ve got something truly worth fighting for. You fight for the same reasons I do. I see parts of myself in you Nikki.
Let’s push all the crude jokes aside for now on that one shall we.
Trace Demon: I’ve done terrible things, sure, but I don’t regret any of them. I’d do every single one of them again, all the backstabbing, all the lying, all the pain and the injuries I’ve inflicted. I’d do every single thing again because it was the right thing. For me anyway, maybe not other people but that’s not the point right now. The point is that even though I stand by every decision I’ve made, every action I’ve taken, that doesn’t mean I don’t want to leave a legacy that my daughter can be proud of. That’s something you understand right, wanting your kid to be proud of you?
She doesn’t know quite what to say.
Trace Demon: Look you’re not gonna believe me, and nobody else is gonna believe me, because quite frankly I wouldn’t believe me. It’s very, very unbelievable.
Not sure I’m selling this.
Trace Demon: I had a conversation a few days ago and an, let’s call her an old friend, she told me that the only person who’s opinion that matters to be is my daughters, and she was right. That’s what this has all been about, her, making sure she can grow up and be proud of her dad. I want her to see that even though I wasn’t the best guy, hell I’m not even a nice guy, that I was capable of doing the right thing. And that’s what I’m doing now with you, the right thing.
Nikki Dean: Why should I trust a word you say?
Trace Demon: You don’t have to, I’m not making you. I’m just telling you the truth. I’m not playing some game, I want to help you. When I look at you I see a fighter but I also see a mother and I want to make sure you get the chance to make your son proud of you too. I want your kid to look up to you not just as a mother but also as someone who fought against everything and achieved her dream. Maybe if I do that then my kid will see me the same way yours does you. Look, I’m not expecting you to say anything. You take the car, my driver will take you back home so you can see your kid and when you’re ready he’ll drive you to the airport. I’ll grab a taxi back and then I’ll see you in Tokyo. We’ve got a tournament to win after all.
She looks at me, and I think she offers up the slightest hint of a smile. I can’t quite be sure.
Nikki Dean: Okay, I guess I’ll see you at the show.
She goes to walk off towards the car. I’m banking on it in three… two… one…
Nikki Dean: Oh and Trace.
Bingo.
Nikki Dean: Thank you, for bailing me out and all.
I just give her a nod, don’t want to oversell the moment. She turns and walks off and I make sure to look as solemn as possible at least until she’s off down the road and out of sight.
See there’s this thing about lies, this big important thing that people don’t seem to realize. If you want people to believe you then you’re lie has to be mixed with the right amount of truth. That’s my secret. People never know exactly what’s true and what isn’t, so they choose to believe what they want to believe. How much of what I just told Nikki is the truth? Well, that’d be telling wouldn’t it. But I get the feeling things are soon going to get very interesting indeed.
< *** >
House of Hell Training Facility
Los Angeles
August 3rd 2015
It’s official, I have to stop answering theing phone. I didn’t even manage to get back on the damn plane this time.
Wayne McGurk: Smoke?
Trace Demon: I swear every single conversation we have starts with you lighting up and offering me a smoke. You do know I quit three years ago right?
Wayne McGurk: Guess I’ve been too busy focusing on how you tried to murder my daughter.
Trace Demon: Attempted murder, really? Mild maiming at best.
Still can’t decide if this was the best idea. Never really reconnected with an old friend a couple of years after breaking his daughter and taking the WFWF World Heavyweight Championship from her. Still, who better to test that out on but good ol’ Wayne McGurk.
Wayne McGurk: You’re lucky I haven’t punched you yet. Actually, you’re lucky Vanessa isn’t here because she really wants to stab you a few times.
Trace Demon: I thought she wanted to stab everyone all the time.
Wayne McGurk: Not everyone, just the majority.
He grins a little, then quickly stops himself as if he doesn’t want to admit to himself that he’s missed my company. Not sure exactly how many friends Wayne ever had outside of me, but I’m guessing not many.
Wayne McGurk: The only reason I called you is to try and figure out exactly what it is you’re up to. Scarlett rang me, told me you and her spoke.
Trace Demon: We buried the hatchet.
Wayne McGurk: Didn’t you do enough of that-
Trace Demon: if you say in her back two years ago then I’m walking out because I can’t handle any of your cheesy crapty passive aggressiveness right now.
…
Wayne McGurk: you.
Trace Demon: You were never very good at comebacks Wayne.
I take a second to look around the school, not a lot has changed. I haven’t stepped foot in here in nearly two years. I’ve still been funding it, still been taking the profits of course, but I’ve lost interest in being here. I’ve no desire to waste my days in this pit. It’s nothing to do with stabbing Wayne in the back. Nothing at all. As if I’ve ever felt guilty about anything.
Wayne McGurk: I’m not interested in being your friend again Trace, I’d have been perfectly happy never speaking to you again, but Scarlett’s got it in her head that you’ve changed your ways, that you’re a better man. Got to admit I find that damn hard to believe. I don’t know what you’ve got planned exactly with Nikki but I don’t want my kid involved in it. Penny either for that matter. You’ve caused them both enough turmoil for aing lifetime.
He takes another drag and I wonder how anybody thinks smoking looks cool.
Trace Demon: I’m not planning anything Wayne; she called me, not the other way around.
Wayne McGurk: That’s because the girl is too trusting. Go on Trace, tell me a bulb didn’t light up over your head, tell me your terrifyinging mind didn’t start putting together some sick little plan the moment she called you. Tell me you haven’t figured out a dozen different ways to turn my daughter’s life to crap again.
It’s almost like he knows me as well as I know myself.
Trace Demon: I can’t tell you that, because that’d be a lie, and believe it or not I don’t like to lie unless I need to. Sure, I’ve thought of plenty of ways to use Scarlett for my own good, but that’s just how I work Wayne. Plans on top of schemes on top of plots remember. But I’m trying to do things differently now, showing respect where it’s earned. That’s the very reason I didn’t tell you to piss off the moment the phone rang. I realize now something I didn’t before, and that’s that trust is important, it gets things done a lot better than manipulation does sometimes. So sure, I’m trying to be a better person and sure, I’m doing that for selfish reasons, but that’s my business, not yours.
Wayne McGurk: It’s my business when it involves my daughter.
Trace Demon: Well guess what, it doesn’t. I don’t want to be part of Scarlett’s life, I don’t want to be part of anybody’s life. I’m not here to make friends with you, I’m not trying to be friends with Nikki or Penny or anyone else. I don’t need friends, but I’m tired of having enemies on all sides. It’s aggrandizing y’know. Too many wolves at the gate of my kingdom, I spend all my time throwing spears to enjoy my riches.
Wayne McGurk: I never did get your metaphors.
Well you were never the brightest bulb.
Trace Demon: You can’t conquer a world by butchering every single person on it Wayne. And would you even want to? Who wants to rule a world with nobody left behind to follow you? No, you want people to embrace you willingly, so you do a few good things, refrain from murdering them and maybe, just maybe, it turns out that people are smart enough to see a good thing when it presents itself. I’m not playing games here and I’m not double crossing anyone, I’m just… being diplomatic.
Wayne McGurk: I reckon that’s scarier than the butchering.
Trace Demon: Maybe, but there’s a lot less blood to clean up at the end of the day.
Wayne McGurk: I don’t think I believe you Trace, I want to, I want to believe that you can change because it means the worlds a safering place to live without a madman running around.
Truth is, words mean nothing.
Wayne McGurk: But I find it very hard to think that you of all people are ever capable of holding in the urge to hurt the people around you.
Actions too. Not when they’re all fake.
Wayne McGurk: So whatever it is that happens next, whenever you eventually crack under the pressure of trying to act like a normal person, I’ll be there to make sure nothing happens to Scarlett or anybody else I care about, you got me?
Because the truth is, nobody knows a damn thing about Trace Demon.
Trace Demon: I got you Wayne, loud and clear.
People seem to think I’ve changed my ways. Wayne clearly doesn’t, but it doesn’t matter either way.
Wayne McGurk: I’ll be watching you Trace.
Trace Demon: Go ahead, you won’t see anything interesting.
Because when the time comes, it’ll be too late. I’ll have everything I want, everything I’ve been working towards since this tournament suggestion just happened to find it’s way into Lila Sleater’s inbox from one of our “PR guys”. As if anybody in this company other than yours truly could ever think up such an idea. No, it’s all coming together nicely, soon I’ll have exactly what I want. And the world won’t even realize it. I’ll still look like a saint. Saint Demon. Got a certain devilish ring to it, don’t you think? Get used to it, because that halo’s soon going to be hanging above my head.
While you, my dear friend, will be hanging from the noose that you can’t even see tightening around your throat every single second that you still have what I want.
< *** >
I’ve heard one thing recently, one idea over and over again. Trace Demon has changed his ways. That’s what everybody seems to be saying, that’s what everyone thinks. That I have changed, that I have seen the light and embraced it and decided to be a better person. But let me tell you something right now, Trace Demon doesn’t change for anybody, because there is nothing to change about Trace Demon. You all look back on my history and you see a man who has done terrible things. You see a man who hurts people, who ends careers, who wages war on anyone who dares to challenge him. You see all that.
I see things a little bit differently.
You see I have never been a bad person, just a man who wants to be the best and have everything that comes with that. I want the money that comes with being on top of the mountain because I want to provide for my family. I want my girlfriend of four years to be happy and enjoy life. I want my brother and sister to know that when things get hard that I am there for them. I want my child to have everything that I did not. To do all that you need money and you need power, and to have money and power you have got to be on top. On top of the business and on top of your game. So Trace Demon hasn’t changed, I still want all the same things, I’m still fighting for all the same reasons, I’m just doing what I’ve always done, something that the majority of the WFWF does not seem capable of.
I’m using my brain.
You see for all my talent and for all my power things have never quite been perfect. Whenever I get the upperhand something always comes along to upend it. When I controlled this company the first time it was Rated X. This time round it was the Saviours of Salvation, it was Lila Sleater, it was Drakz, it was all the above and more. And the mistake I made through all of this was placing my faith in people who didn’t deserve it. Joe Bishop, Jason Anders, Kyle Matthews, none of them deserved my respect or my faith and the truth is that they didn’t have it. I didn’t respect any of them and I didn’t trust any of them and that is where the Final Revolution went wrong. You see I realized that in this life you have no choice but to trust the people around you. You cannot do everything on your own because even the strongest of soldiers cannot defeat the biggest of armies.
So I come into this very unlike-me situation, challenging for the WFWF World Tag Team Championships with something I have not had before. A partner that I have placed my trust in. A woman who I have offered respect and trust and faith to and who has paid it back twice over now. Nikki Dean is a fighter, she went out as National Champion and, as soon as she came back, she took that title back. Over the past month we have beaten the legend that is Michael Kyzer so bad that his partner couldn’t bare to look at him no longer. Hollywood Unhinged are heading the same way. And now we come to Drakz and Tugarin Zmey. As if that’s lasting.
I’ve got plenty of history with you Drakz. We’ve torn the house down every time we’ve stepped in the ring together. And sure, you’re up two to one, so it seems right about time that I tie it up. Now I know Drakz you’re probably full of confidence right now, you got a Dragon watching your back. But think about the little man riding on top of that dragon, because I get the feeling that he isn’t your biggest fan. Now I know that everybody wants to think that Tugarin’s got a mind of his own, but you’re looking at the man who signs the contracts, you’re looking at the man who hears everything, and I know that Tugarin Zmey is no turncoat. He is loyal to DMK, and DMK ain’t loyal to nobody but himself.
So maybe Drakz, maybe I pay a visit to DMK and maybe I offer him a better deal that you have to just… not show up, and keep his Dragon caged for the night. And you know just as well as I do Drakz that if little Donnie told his Dragon not to show then he wouldn’t show. If Donnie told his Dragon to tear you apart then he’d tear you apart. Drakz there is no unity on your team, you’re not even a team, you’re just two men who happen to have got lucky in the draw. See after two easy warm up matches you finally come up against a team on the level of your own. We’ve got the World Champion and the Dragon against the King and… another man’s wife. Not got the ring to it I planned but we’ll work on it in marketing.
Point is whether you want to accept it or not, Nikki trusts me, and I respect her enough to return the favour. There’s no trust between you and Tugarin so it’s just a matter of time before it all falls apart. And when it does we’ll be there to pick up the pieces.
You don’t have to be a good man to be a winner. You’ve just got to be a smart one.
And Drakz, Tugarin, you’re looking at the smartest man in the room.
Osaka, Japan
July 24th 2015
There’s a lot of things people don’t know about me, and even more things people don’t know if they haven’t trawled through my wiki page. And who would, really? Who’s got the time to waste on reading entire pages worth of information that doesn’t really matter about anything? Nobody important, that’s for sure.
Anyway, getting side tracked. Like I was saying, there’s a lot people don’t know about me, especially newcomers to the sport. Take for instance the fact that when I started out wrestling I wasn’t much more than a brawler. A damn good one, sure, but brawling and smashing people with various hardware was basically my entire repertoire. I barely even bothered locking up if I could help it. It wasn’t really until I got the call up from the house show circuit that I realized I had to branch out, that I had to become more than just someone who could throw a mean right hook. So where did I go to learn how to wrestle like I was possessed by Strong Style itself? The only place worth going.
Japan. The Hitori Dojo to be precise.
Heiji Hitori: No damn it, hit harder, you’d never win like that!
I haven’t been back here in nigh on four years, but I’ve kept in touch with Heiji sporadically since then. The guy’s getting into his fifties now and he’s got a real Mr. Miyagi thing about him but don’t let that fool you; he’s still one of the toughest sons of bitches I’ve ever met.
Heiji Hitori: Hook the leg, no tighter! Wrench it till he taps or his leg snaps, whichever comes first!
He’s not speaking English obviously; I’m just translating for all you idiots who don’t speak fluent Japanese like yours truly. I mean what wrestler with any respect for the industry doesn’t know Japanese? Well probably Yukio Blaze, but he doesn’t know how to tie his shoelaces so that’s not really a good answer.
Trace Demon: Heiji you old bastard, you’ve not lightened up one bit.
He’s a little bit surprised to see me, understandable given that he had no idea I was coming. I’ve got a tendency to forget to call ahead on these kind of things, busy man and all. Also I don’t care. I can tell he’s happy I’ve dropped in though.
Heiji Hitori: Who in their right mind let you in here?
He just hides his happiness really well. It’s a Japanese elder thing.
Trace Demon: Come on, you’re happy to see me. I know you’re happy to see me. I can see it in the fake look of disappointment in your eyes.
Heiji Hitori: Take a break everyone; we’re not getting anything done until this fool leaves the building.
Trace Demon: See, I knew you were happy to see me, wanting one on one time with your greatest success story.
He shakes his head as I smirk, laying on the arrogance a little thick just to annoy the old man. Yes, I’m self-aware sometimes; I just don’t like to make a big deal of it. As the trainees of the dojo disperse away from the ring Heiji takes a seat beside it. I perch on its edge, remembering my training from years back and the many times that I got kicked in the face here. Good times.
Heiji Hitori: You’re Japanese has improved.
Trace Demon: I’ve slept with a lot of Asian girls, what can I say.
Heiji Hitori: You’re attitude has not.
Trace Demon: Again, Asian girls, they’re a bad influence.
He shakes his head but I can see the faintest hint of a grin. A lot of the trainees you get through these doors are highly respectful of the Japanese wrestling culture and their attitude follows suit. In short they’re boring as hell. I think he enjoyed having someone walk through that door who could break the monotony of it all.
Heiji Hitori: Saké?
Trace Demon: I’d love to pretend that I don’t know that has alcohol in it and accept the offer, but I’m gonna have to decline. Still sober.
Heiji Hitori: Ah yes, you have undergone a lot of changes since stepping foot in my dojo all those years ago. You came here as an arrogant, reckless, good for nothing and now… well not a lot has changed, but you haven’t died young so that is quite the achievement.
Trace Demon: I’m still young! Wait, why am I arguing the whole not dead thing?
He chuckles to himself, I never saw him laugh when I was training here but I know now that the tough old man act is a bit of a front. He wants the best out of his students and to get the best you’ve got to make sure they know that you know more than they do, and intimidating them into silence is a good way of doing that. Sometimes you got to do things that don’t seem all that nice to get results for the good of the many, that’s a life lesson I’ve taken in stride.
Heiji Hitori: Because you argue against everything Demon-San, you have no desire to agree with anything unless it was your idea.
Trace Demon: That is not true.
Heiji Hitori: You are constantly argumentative.
Trace Demon: I’m very agreeable damn it, I’m… okay, I kind of see your point.
I’ve been Miyagi’d.
Heiji Hitori: But I admit, you are not the young man who came through those doors all those years ago with nothing more than a big mouth and a stiff right hand. I taught you well-
Trace Demon: I’m sure you once told me only the fools boasts about himself.
Heiji Hitori: As I was trying to say before your constant need for attention interrupted, I taught you well but you have grown into yourself since leaving me. I have followed your career closely Demon san, you have done well.
Trace Demon: Four World Championships across multiple companies, a hall of fame ring, owning two wrestling companies and a dozen other ventures, yeah, “done well” might be an understatement.
Heiji Hitori: Do I look like a man who has any interest in your physical achievements? No, your titles and your money mean nothing to me because they are not my own, they do me no good. I am talking about that young woman you have found yourself teaming with.
I feel sometimes that escaping from the WFWF would be a lot easier if I stopped associating with so many people involved in wrestling. Problem being that I hate people, and the only reason I talk to the ones I do is because I’m obligated to by monetary needs.
Heiji Hitori: When you first came here you were hopeless, not because of a lack of ability, you were always talented. You picked up on things much swifter than the others, but your ego, your stubbornness, your inability to trust others; those are the things that held you back. Those are the reasons I was always so hard on you, I thought that if I pushed you, if I tried to break you then you would realize the futility in the way you lived. I knew that if you could achieve that, if you could see the value in respecting the business and the people around you then you would truly be something great.
Why do I have a feeling he’s not about to say I did that?
Heiji Hitori: You never did that.
That’s why.
ing Miyagi’d again. Wait, am I using that term I completely made up correctly? I’m sure I am, yeah, course.Heiji Hitori: If anything you went completely against everything I tried to teach you, as if you listened to none of it.
Trace Demon: I can safely say I probably didn’t.
Heiji Hitori: You spent years using people, trusting nobody but yourself. You turned on every person who placed their trust in you. I am surprised at your success Demon san, not because of a lack of talent but because of how you throw people aside as if they mattered so little to you. You may believe that my friend, you may see people as disposable, but do you not see that you’re greatest success in life, your family, comes only out of trust. If you placed that trust, and that respect, in someone who stands beside you in that ring then maybe you would find a success of a wholly new degree.
Trace Demon: Is there a degree above what I’ve managed? I really don’t think there is.
Heiji Hitori: Let me put it in a way you might understand. A soldier can never achieve the same as an army, and you cannot achieve all that you hope to solely on the strength of your own shoulders. You use others not because you see them as tools, but because you needed them to do what you could not do alone. But people remember, and they recognise the trait of betrayal within a person. You turn your back one too many time and you will soon find nobody willing to face you eye to eye. And when that time comes you will very quickly find yourself unable to achieve anything.
Trace Demon: This is getting way too deep.
Heiji Hitori: You wish to be a success, you wish to be a great champion, yet you have never defended your treasured World Championship successfully. Your success is borderline and it is your own egotism that holds you back. Accept that trust and respect is not a weakness; know that the greatest soldiers were even greater because of the men that made up their army. A general is swiftly struck down if he has no men to fight alongside him. And you Demon san, if you do not accept this and change sooner rather than later, will soon find yourself with nowhere to turn to when you need a so called “tool”.
He rises from his seat, pats me on my shoulder. I’ve been far too Miyagi’d to bat it away out of disgust.
Heiji Hitori: See my boy, I told you once that I would never be done teaching you. It turns out I was right.
I’m never watching the Karate Kid again.
Trace Demon Presents
Saint Demon
A Trace Demon Roleplay
You Don’t Know Anything; Part 3 of 3
< *** >
Tokyo Dome
Tokyo, Japan
July 27th 2015
It took some serious effort to kick everyone out of the Dome, but it was worth it for this sight. I like to check out the arena before each show, to get a feel for the building, to get my thoughts together, and usually I let the guys go about their s**t while I do it, maybe make some small talk, play the interested boss. But not here, not today, not at the Tokyo Dome.
Anyone who knows anything about wrestling knows about the Tokyo Dome, and anyone with at least some respect for the business knows that this is holy ground right here. You don’t come to wrestle at Tokyo Dome and see this as just another wrestling match. That isn’t how it works. Tokyo Dome is the kind of arena that every single would-be wrestler should aspire to wrestle in. Every single great in this business has appeared here, and every future legend seeks to stand in this very ring surrounded by a horde of people craving real wrestling.
Because that’s what makes places like the Tokyo Dome and Madison Square Garden so special. It’s the fans, it’s the people that come out knowing full well exactly what it means to be in that building. Now there isn’t much love lost between me and the fans, I’m not gonna lie, and I’m not gonna pretend that I give a damn what they think of me, but that doesn’t mean I don’t recognise there’s a certain selection, the type that show up to the Dome for instance, who have a bit of sense in their limited scope of thought.
See there’s a certain kind of fan who show up to shows like this, and it isn’t the usual inbred hick we get when we run a place like Texas. No, the people who come to the Dome want wrestling, real wrestling. They’re not here for any of Hollywood Unhinged’s fake ass brand of acting like wrestlers, they’re not here to sit in awe of Tugarin Zmey’s size, they’re not interested in watching Samael Ahriman pretend to know what he’s doing. No, these people want real wrestling, they want to see people go to war inside the ring, put everything they’ve got and everything they are into their match just for the chance of coming out victorious.
Basically, they come here to watch people like me.
That’s why I, I mean we, already have an advantage going into this tournament final. Tugarin Zmey’s never stepped foot in the Tokyo Dome and when he done he’s going to realize that nobody here gives a crap about how much of a freak he is. I’m not intimidated, Nikki’s gonna keep fighting even if she is and these people just don’t give a damn. Drakz has wrestled around the world, sure, but he’s entering a world that doesn’t care about how much he can talk and all the antics he can get up to. These people don’t give a crap about any of that unless you can wrestle. Got to give the man credit, he can wrestle, he’s one of the few guys who’ve beaten me recently…
It’s hard not to let my thoughts run away with themselves when I think about that. The number of times I’ve lost over the past three years are few, the times I’ve lost one on one are even fewer. Twice in fact, both to Drakz. Once fair and square I’ll give him, but the last time it was purely down to that crazy bastard Philly Schneider.
I lie back in the ring, staring up at the roof of Tokyo Dome. This is the only time I intend to be looking up at those lights for a prolonged period any time soon.
So yeah, Drakz can wrestle, but he’s not on my level, not when it comes to pure, strong style wrestling, the kind these people love. If Drakz and Tugarin are smart, and I’ve got my doubts about the latter, then they’ll be expecting a war, but they probably won’t be expecting to walk into an arena filled with fans cheering my name. And they will be cheering my name, because I’m exactly the man they’ve come out to watch. They won’t be expecting it, and they’re gonna have to find a way to handle that, and that’s just one more distraction, one more problem they’ve got to deal with, just one more reason they’re going to lose. Add it to the list.
This is Tokyo Dome, this place is a kingdom in the world of professional wrestling. And I… I just so happen to be a king.
< *** >
HER Apartment
July 28th 2015
This was a surprise.
?: You’re still not drinking, right?
Trace Demon: No, still sober.
Quite the surprise in fact.
?: Right on.
Of all the phone calls I was expecting to get out here in Japan this wasn’t one of them, and I’ve got to admit I wasn’t exactly sure about coming here. What if her whole goal here was to get me here and then repeatedly stab me with a self-made shank carved out of a heh? I mean sure the chances of someone trying to murder you with a heh-shank twice in one lifetime is pretty slim, but it could happen.
?: This is kind of weird, y’know?
Trace Demon: Yeah, I’d say, wasn’t exactly planning on seeing you any time soon Scarlett.
Scarlett Quinn, former WFWF World Heavyweight Champion and my former protégé in many ways. We had a good relationship, she was like family at one point, until of course I broke her in two to get hold of that title. A lot of people see it as my darkest moment, the one that proves I don’t have a soul. I see it as my proudest, because I was at the top of the mountain and I don’t care how I got there, the fact was that I was there.
I have no regrets.
Scarlett Quinn: Bet you’re wondering why I called you.
Trace Demon: No, I wonder whether I could ever make it in the porn industry. I’m completely
ing baffled as to why you called me. There’s a big difference.Scarlett Quinn: Why do you always have to make everything into some big sarcastic joke?
Trace Demon: Why do you automatically assume I’m being sarcastic?
She chuckles, seemingly unperturbed by the fact that she is currently sharing the room with the very man who broke her body, broke her spirit and, until recent events, broke up her very special friendship with Miss Shannon. She leans back in her seat, a battered thing that she must of gotten from a flea market. The entire apartment screams hipster chic, which I suppose is unsurprising given that Scarlett Quinn is very much the embodiment of that very unflattering trend.
Scarlett Quinn: Because you’re either lying or hiding the truth behind sarcasm or wit, that’s your style.
Trace Demon: Look who’s gotten smart.
Scarlett Quinn: I’ve just learnt to think for myself. Probably got something to do with being away from mom and dad. And you.
Trace Demon: You never let anyone think for you Scar, you just let yourself hear the things you wanted to hear. None of what happened would have come as a surprise if you’d paid attention. I mean even Wayne saw it coming, whether he wants to admit it or not. He warned me off but he didn’t do anything because he wanted to think that you had it in control.
Scarlett Quinn: I thought I did too.
There’s an awkward silence, which comes as no surprise. What was she really expecting to get out of this? Closure? Closure is a lie, there’s no such thing in real life.
Scarlett Quinn: I’ve been speaking to Penny again recently; she told me you’ve changed, that you’ve actually helped Nikki out a couple times. That you’re showing people respect which I’m guessing is not something that comes easy to you.
Trace Demon: I’m doing what’s good for my chances in the tournament. Can’t win the tag team titles without a tag team partner. It’s kind of in the name.
Scarlett Quinn: When did you ever care about the tag team titles? You once told me that being in a tag team was a way of admitting you can’t get anything done on your own.
The problem with being right all the time is that eventually someone uses that against you.
Trace Demon: What can I say, I got bored of winning all the time so I thought I’d put myself at a handicap with this whole random tournament thing. Who knew I’d get a semi-competent tag partner?
Scarlett Quinn: I don’t think you even convinced yourself with that one.
Trace Demon: I didn’t come here to have you question my sudden desire to not hurt every single person I meet. I came here because I was curious about why you called me out of the blue.
Scarlett Quinn: Well that one’s easy; I just got tired of hating you. It’s exhausting, properly hating someone, especially when that someone is just doing the only thing they know how to do. So I decided I’d stop, figured the best way to beat you was to show you that you didn’t break me, that I’m still alive and kicking and making something of myself. That was enough for me, I could of gone my whole life without seeing you again, but then Penny told me all about how you seem to be turning over a new leaf and I had to see it for myself because I just couldn’t believe it.
Trace Demon: Satisfied by what you see then?
She shrugs her shoulders, undecided.
Scarlett Quinn: Not sure exactly. Something’s different, can’t quite put my finger on what it is. I’m not even sure if it’s good or bad exactly. But there’s something in your eyes, your brains ticking differently, just wish I could see exactly what it was thinking.
Trace Demon: Trust me Scarlett; you don’t want to see what’s in my head. It’d Mountains of Madness the crap out of you.
Scarlett Quinn: Probably, but part of me wants to believe that whatever it is that drives you, maybe it’s capable of doing something good. Nobody can be one hundred per cent evil can they.
Trace Demon: Go back to the 1940’s and tell the Jews that.
That kills the conversation dead, as most holocaust jokes tend to do.
Scarlett Quinn: It’s not my opinion of you that matters Trace. You’re a dad now, think of Eliza and ask yourself what she’s going to think when she looks back at your career and sees all the horrible things you’ve done. Ask yourself whether she’ll be boasting about the fact that her dad nearly crippled someone he used to call family. Like do you honestly believe that she’s going to see all that and be proud of you?
Who gave her the right to go away and learn life lessons?
Scarlett Quinn: When I look at my parents I see that they fought for what they believed in and they fought to win, they did it for the most part with honour and respect for their friends. They stood by people, they put their faith in each other and their friends and people did the same with them because they earned it. I’m still fighting today because I know that’s what they did. I might have built my own life but it’s built on what I learned from them. So really Trace ask yourself.
What is Eliza going to learn from you?
< *** >
Macon Police Department
Macon, Atlanta
August 2nd 2015
I don’t know what it is about this week, but every time I answer my phone recently I seem to get some kind of unexpected invite. The first of course was dear little Scarlett Quinn and her failed lesson in ethics. As if she really believes she can sway my game plan. No, not when we’re this far in. Speaking of the plan, this very unexpected phone call pushes things along nicely. I can’t say I saw this coming exactly, I knew something was going to explode between the two of them given the history, but still I thought she had a little more sense. Ah, here she comes now.
Trace Demon: Hello partner. Well, jumpsuits certainly don’t flatter you do they.
Nikki Dean: What are you doing here, Trace?
She seems just as surprised to see me as I was to get the call, but it pays to be the boss. The guy at the desk couldn’t get through to our old pal Josh so he went to the next best thing, WFWF’s central office. There’s a reason I only hire people I trust to run the front desk, the moment our front desk got that call she was patching it straight through to me rather than Josh. Again, that’s the boss’s privilege
Trace Demon: Nikki, haven’t you heard that things get back to me?
Nikki Dean: Yeah, I heard you were big on espionage.
Trace Demon: I’m insulted Nikki.
I make sure to look like I’ve got hurt feelings. It’s tough, pretending I give a crap to such a degree that I could even feel hurt by her distrust. Then again I’ve always been a very good actor.
Trace Demon: It makes me wonder why I’m even here right now, spending my own cash to bail you out of this mess you’re in.
Nikki Dean: I’m thinking it has something to do with our title match.
Trace Demon: Well maybe I wanted to see if the boy is alright. I’ve got a soft spot for family.
I’ll be honest with you, that’s less of a lie than I’d like to let on. I’m capable of sympathy, especially for a child who is being dragged through hell because of the sins of their parent. I know all too well how that feels.
Nikki Dean: He’s fine. You don’t have to act so concerned.
Trace Demon: I’m not acting Nikki. He’s a child, one that’s scared out of his mind right now.
Nikki Dean: And he has the support he needs.
She says it with some serious vitriol, certainly not pleased that I’m questioning her ability to take care of her own kid. I’m not questioning that though, I know she’d do anything for her son, it’s one of the things I like about the girl, but all the fight in the world doesn’t always keep the wolves from the door.
Nikki Dean: Where can I change?
She calms it when addressing the officer who’s just handed her her clothes and then unlocks the handcuffs that have been cutting into her wrists.
Officer James: The bathroom in the waiting room. Since we’ve already processed your release you’re free to go afterward.
Trace Demon: You heard the man, get dressed. We’ve got things to do.
Nikki Dean: Not before you answer some questions.
Trace Demon: Nikki, I don’t have time to play games with you right now. I flew out here from Japan. I’ve had no sleep in two days and I’ve got a jet waiting to fly me right back out there the moment I’m done with you. So go and get changed or I’ll take you home in full orange if that’s what you want.
Nikki Dean: I’m not going anywhere with you until I know I’m safe. I’ll call my dad if I have to and miss the pay per view.
Trace Demon: Look, you’re safe alright, I don’t get anything out of hurting you so why would I bother. I’ll answer whatever questions you want but I’m not doing it in this place.
Officer James: You really have to move along ma’am.
She looks hesitant, unsure, but she doesn’t want to risk starting an argument with the police officer so she resigns herself to following my direction.
Nikki Dean: Fine, but as soon as I’m dressed I want answers.
Trace Demon: Whatever you say.
She hesitates again before giving in completely, heading for the washroom.
Trace Demon: Do me a favour and send her outside when she’s done.
I don’t wait around to hear the office complain that he’s not the receptionist. I get out of there as quickly as possible, the place makes me feel trapped and I’m not even in lockup. I hang around for several minutes, wishing I hadn’t quit smoking so I had something to pass the time, before Nikki comes out.
Trace Demon: Well that’s a much better look.
Nikki Dean: Cut the crap. You promised me answers.
Trace Demon: So impatient Nikki, a thank you would have been a nice start. Alright then, what is it exactly that you want to know?
Nikki Dean: I want to know why you’ve gone out of your way to protect me these past few months?
Trace Demon: What kind of stupid question is that?
Nikki Dean: One that I expect an honest answer to. It’s no secret you don’t like anyone I associate with, so why in the hell are you sticking your neck out for me?
Trace Demon: The same reason I do most things, because I want to win.
Nikki Dean: I’m not buying it. You don’t want to be tag team champion, you just couldn’t quit because you don’t like looking weak.
The girl’s a lot smarter than I gave her credit for. Still not smart enough to see where it’s all going, but still, credit where credit is due.
Trace Demon: What’s your point exactly?
Nikki Dean: That you could of just let Kyzer and Ante take me out of action and you would have had an out. You could of let me rot in that cell and you would have had an out. You’re not helping me because you want to win, you’re not even helping yourself because if you were you wouldn’t be helping me full stop. So tell me Trace, why are you helping me?
Trace Demon: This is pointless.
Nikki Dean: Stop, just cut the crap for once and tell me!
Trace Demon: Because you’re better than you think you are, alright? Because I see something in you that nobody else sees. Not the fans, not Penny or Demento, not even Josh. That isn’t Josh’s kid so he doesn’t understand the fight and the drive it takes to protect a kid, and I can see that you’d give your life to protect yours. You’ve got the potential to be something great because you’ve got something truly worth fighting for. You fight for the same reasons I do. I see parts of myself in you Nikki.
Let’s push all the crude jokes aside for now on that one shall we.
Trace Demon: I’ve done terrible things, sure, but I don’t regret any of them. I’d do every single one of them again, all the backstabbing, all the lying, all the pain and the injuries I’ve inflicted. I’d do every single thing again because it was the right thing. For me anyway, maybe not other people but that’s not the point right now. The point is that even though I stand by every decision I’ve made, every action I’ve taken, that doesn’t mean I don’t want to leave a legacy that my daughter can be proud of. That’s something you understand right, wanting your kid to be proud of you?
She doesn’t know quite what to say.
Trace Demon: Look you’re not gonna believe me, and nobody else is gonna believe me, because quite frankly I wouldn’t believe me. It’s very, very unbelievable.
Not sure I’m selling this.
Trace Demon: I had a conversation a few days ago and an, let’s call her an old friend, she told me that the only person who’s opinion that matters to be is my daughters, and she was right. That’s what this has all been about, her, making sure she can grow up and be proud of her dad. I want her to see that even though I wasn’t the best guy, hell I’m not even a nice guy, that I was capable of doing the right thing. And that’s what I’m doing now with you, the right thing.
Nikki Dean: Why should I trust a word you say?
Trace Demon: You don’t have to, I’m not making you. I’m just telling you the truth. I’m not playing some game, I want to help you. When I look at you I see a fighter but I also see a mother and I want to make sure you get the chance to make your son proud of you too. I want your kid to look up to you not just as a mother but also as someone who fought against everything and achieved her dream. Maybe if I do that then my kid will see me the same way yours does you. Look, I’m not expecting you to say anything. You take the car, my driver will take you back home so you can see your kid and when you’re ready he’ll drive you to the airport. I’ll grab a taxi back and then I’ll see you in Tokyo. We’ve got a tournament to win after all.
She looks at me, and I think she offers up the slightest hint of a smile. I can’t quite be sure.
Nikki Dean: Okay, I guess I’ll see you at the show.
She goes to walk off towards the car. I’m banking on it in three… two… one…
Nikki Dean: Oh and Trace.
Bingo.
Nikki Dean: Thank you, for bailing me out and all.
I just give her a nod, don’t want to oversell the moment. She turns and walks off and I make sure to look as solemn as possible at least until she’s off down the road and out of sight.
See there’s this thing about lies, this big important thing that people don’t seem to realize. If you want people to believe you then you’re lie has to be mixed with the right amount of truth. That’s my secret. People never know exactly what’s true and what isn’t, so they choose to believe what they want to believe. How much of what I just told Nikki is the truth? Well, that’d be telling wouldn’t it. But I get the feeling things are soon going to get very interesting indeed.
< *** >
House of Hell Training Facility
Los Angeles
August 3rd 2015
It’s official, I have to stop answering the
ing phone. I didn’t even manage to get back on the damn plane this time.Wayne McGurk: Smoke?
Trace Demon: I swear every single conversation we have starts with you lighting up and offering me a smoke. You do know I quit three years ago right?
Wayne McGurk: Guess I’ve been too busy focusing on how you tried to murder my daughter.
Trace Demon: Attempted murder, really? Mild maiming at best.
Still can’t decide if this was the best idea. Never really reconnected with an old friend a couple of years after breaking his daughter and taking the WFWF World Heavyweight Championship from her. Still, who better to test that out on but good ol’ Wayne McGurk.
Wayne McGurk: You’re lucky I haven’t punched you yet. Actually, you’re lucky Vanessa isn’t here because she really wants to stab you a few times.
Trace Demon: I thought she wanted to stab everyone all the time.
Wayne McGurk: Not everyone, just the majority.
He grins a little, then quickly stops himself as if he doesn’t want to admit to himself that he’s missed my company. Not sure exactly how many friends Wayne ever had outside of me, but I’m guessing not many.
Wayne McGurk: The only reason I called you is to try and figure out exactly what it is you’re up to. Scarlett rang me, told me you and her spoke.
Trace Demon: We buried the hatchet.
Wayne McGurk: Didn’t you do enough of that-
Trace Demon: if you say in her back two years ago then I’m walking out because I can’t handle any of your cheesy crapty passive aggressiveness right now.
…
Wayne McGurk:
you.Trace Demon: You were never very good at comebacks Wayne.
I take a second to look around the school, not a lot has changed. I haven’t stepped foot in here in nearly two years. I’ve still been funding it, still been taking the profits of course, but I’ve lost interest in being here. I’ve no desire to waste my days in this pit. It’s nothing to do with stabbing Wayne in the back. Nothing at all. As if I’ve ever felt guilty about anything.
Wayne McGurk: I’m not interested in being your friend again Trace, I’d have been perfectly happy never speaking to you again, but Scarlett’s got it in her head that you’ve changed your ways, that you’re a better man. Got to admit I find that damn hard to believe. I don’t know what you’ve got planned exactly with Nikki but I don’t want my kid involved in it. Penny either for that matter. You’ve caused them both enough turmoil for a
ing lifetime.He takes another drag and I wonder how anybody thinks smoking looks cool.
Trace Demon: I’m not planning anything Wayne; she called me, not the other way around.
Wayne McGurk: That’s because the girl is too trusting. Go on Trace, tell me a bulb didn’t light up over your head, tell me your terrifying
ing mind didn’t start putting together some sick little plan the moment she called you. Tell me you haven’t figured out a dozen different ways to turn my daughter’s life to crap again.It’s almost like he knows me as well as I know myself.
Trace Demon: I can’t tell you that, because that’d be a lie, and believe it or not I don’t like to lie unless I need to. Sure, I’ve thought of plenty of ways to use Scarlett for my own good, but that’s just how I work Wayne. Plans on top of schemes on top of plots remember. But I’m trying to do things differently now, showing respect where it’s earned. That’s the very reason I didn’t tell you to piss off the moment the phone rang. I realize now something I didn’t before, and that’s that trust is important, it gets things done a lot better than manipulation does sometimes. So sure, I’m trying to be a better person and sure, I’m doing that for selfish reasons, but that’s my business, not yours.
Wayne McGurk: It’s my business when it involves my daughter.
Trace Demon: Well guess what, it doesn’t. I don’t want to be part of Scarlett’s life, I don’t want to be part of anybody’s life. I’m not here to make friends with you, I’m not trying to be friends with Nikki or Penny or anyone else. I don’t need friends, but I’m tired of having enemies on all sides. It’s aggrandizing y’know. Too many wolves at the gate of my kingdom, I spend all my time throwing spears to enjoy my riches.
Wayne McGurk: I never did get your metaphors.
Well you were never the brightest bulb.
Trace Demon: You can’t conquer a world by butchering every single person on it Wayne. And would you even want to? Who wants to rule a world with nobody left behind to follow you? No, you want people to embrace you willingly, so you do a few good things, refrain from murdering them and maybe, just maybe, it turns out that people are smart enough to see a good thing when it presents itself. I’m not playing games here and I’m not double crossing anyone, I’m just… being diplomatic.
Wayne McGurk: I reckon that’s scarier than the butchering.
Trace Demon: Maybe, but there’s a lot less blood to clean up at the end of the day.
Wayne McGurk: I don’t think I believe you Trace, I want to, I want to believe that you can change because it means the worlds a safer
ing place to live without a madman running around.Truth is, words mean nothing.
Wayne McGurk: But I find it very hard to think that you of all people are ever capable of holding in the urge to hurt the people around you.
Actions too. Not when they’re all fake.
Wayne McGurk: So whatever it is that happens next, whenever you eventually crack under the pressure of trying to act like a normal person, I’ll be there to make sure nothing happens to Scarlett or anybody else I care about, you got me?
Because the truth is, nobody knows a damn thing about Trace Demon.
Trace Demon: I got you Wayne, loud and clear.
People seem to think I’ve changed my ways. Wayne clearly doesn’t, but it doesn’t matter either way.
Wayne McGurk: I’ll be watching you Trace.
Trace Demon: Go ahead, you won’t see anything interesting.
Because when the time comes, it’ll be too late. I’ll have everything I want, everything I’ve been working towards since this tournament suggestion just happened to find it’s way into Lila Sleater’s inbox from one of our “PR guys”. As if anybody in this company other than yours truly could ever think up such an idea. No, it’s all coming together nicely, soon I’ll have exactly what I want. And the world won’t even realize it. I’ll still look like a saint. Saint Demon. Got a certain devilish ring to it, don’t you think? Get used to it, because that halo’s soon going to be hanging above my head.
While you, my dear friend, will be hanging from the noose that you can’t even see tightening around your throat every single second that you still have what I want.
< *** >
I’ve heard one thing recently, one idea over and over again. Trace Demon has changed his ways. That’s what everybody seems to be saying, that’s what everyone thinks. That I have changed, that I have seen the light and embraced it and decided to be a better person. But let me tell you something right now, Trace Demon doesn’t change for anybody, because there is nothing to change about Trace Demon. You all look back on my history and you see a man who has done terrible things. You see a man who hurts people, who ends careers, who wages war on anyone who dares to challenge him. You see all that.
I see things a little bit differently.
You see I have never been a bad person, just a man who wants to be the best and have everything that comes with that. I want the money that comes with being on top of the mountain because I want to provide for my family. I want my girlfriend of four years to be happy and enjoy life. I want my brother and sister to know that when things get hard that I am there for them. I want my child to have everything that I did not. To do all that you need money and you need power, and to have money and power you have got to be on top. On top of the business and on top of your game. So Trace Demon hasn’t changed, I still want all the same things, I’m still fighting for all the same reasons, I’m just doing what I’ve always done, something that the majority of the WFWF does not seem capable of.
I’m using my brain.
You see for all my talent and for all my power things have never quite been perfect. Whenever I get the upperhand something always comes along to upend it. When I controlled this company the first time it was Rated X. This time round it was the Saviours of Salvation, it was Lila Sleater, it was Drakz, it was all the above and more. And the mistake I made through all of this was placing my faith in people who didn’t deserve it. Joe Bishop, Jason Anders, Kyle Matthews, none of them deserved my respect or my faith and the truth is that they didn’t have it. I didn’t respect any of them and I didn’t trust any of them and that is where the Final Revolution went wrong. You see I realized that in this life you have no choice but to trust the people around you. You cannot do everything on your own because even the strongest of soldiers cannot defeat the biggest of armies.
So I come into this very unlike-me situation, challenging for the WFWF World Tag Team Championships with something I have not had before. A partner that I have placed my trust in. A woman who I have offered respect and trust and faith to and who has paid it back twice over now. Nikki Dean is a fighter, she went out as National Champion and, as soon as she came back, she took that title back. Over the past month we have beaten the legend that is Michael Kyzer so bad that his partner couldn’t bare to look at him no longer. Hollywood Unhinged are heading the same way. And now we come to Drakz and Tugarin Zmey. As if that’s lasting.
I’ve got plenty of history with you Drakz. We’ve torn the house down every time we’ve stepped in the ring together. And sure, you’re up two to one, so it seems right about time that I tie it up. Now I know Drakz you’re probably full of confidence right now, you got a Dragon watching your back. But think about the little man riding on top of that dragon, because I get the feeling that he isn’t your biggest fan. Now I know that everybody wants to think that Tugarin’s got a mind of his own, but you’re looking at the man who signs the contracts, you’re looking at the man who hears everything, and I know that Tugarin Zmey is no turncoat. He is loyal to DMK, and DMK ain’t loyal to nobody but himself.
So maybe Drakz, maybe I pay a visit to DMK and maybe I offer him a better deal that you have to just… not show up, and keep his Dragon caged for the night. And you know just as well as I do Drakz that if little Donnie told his Dragon not to show then he wouldn’t show. If Donnie told his Dragon to tear you apart then he’d tear you apart. Drakz there is no unity on your team, you’re not even a team, you’re just two men who happen to have got lucky in the draw. See after two easy warm up matches you finally come up against a team on the level of your own. We’ve got the World Champion and the Dragon against the King and… another man’s wife. Not got the ring to it I planned but we’ll work on it in marketing.
Point is whether you want to accept it or not, Nikki trusts me, and I respect her enough to return the favour. There’s no trust between you and Tugarin so it’s just a matter of time before it all falls apart. And when it does we’ll be there to pick up the pieces.
You don’t have to be a good man to be a winner. You’ve just got to be a smart one.
And Drakz, Tugarin, you’re looking at the smartest man in the room.
