Gigi Steward vs. Marie Jones

[The Matt]

1 of 2

======

==========
September 12th, 2024
Boise, Idaho
Off Camera
==========

SCW Breakdown and the first two rounds of the Trios Tournament are drawing to a close and the backstage area of the ExtraMile Arena in Boise, Idaho, is a bustling hub of energy and anticipation, alive with the sounds of crew members, competitors, staff, and other personnel moving about to wrap things up and close up shop so to speak. The space is utilitarian, designed for functionality rather than aesthetics, with gray concrete walls and industrial lighting casting a cool, almost sterile glow over the area. Metal barricades line the wider hallways, creating makeshift corridors. Along the walls, large black trunks and road cases labeled with various equipment and wrestler names are stacked in neat rows. Some cases are open, revealing coiled cables, microphones, and lighting equipment, while others remain sealed. Temporary folding tables are set up against the walls, cluttered with water bottles, energy drinks, and snacks for the talent and crew.

SCW superstar, “The Phoenix” Marie Jones, did not participate in the Trios Tournament this year. This was somewhat disappointing, as she had never won a Trios contract before and this opportunity certainly would have given her the chance to immediately propel herself into title contention. Marie is acutely aware of the fact that she is only two championships away from Supreme Champion status; the Adrenaline Title and the World Championship. While having a Trios certainly would have helped streamline the process of winning those titles, Marie still takes some solace in knowing that she can still earn an opportunity at those championships without taking any shortcuts, by simply fighting and clawing her way up the ladder. Marie’s twin sister, Kimberly Williams, was a part of Trios. Unfortunately, The Woman Scorned was eliminated in the first round. Marie is also aware that Kim has been a little more unhinged than usual lately and she is concerned for the mental well being of her twin sister after this defeat on Breakdown. Marie is now on the hunt for Kimberly, hoping to talk some sense into her, hoping to console her and get her back on track. She walks the halls of the Extramile Arena wearing a sleek black miniskirt, hugging her curves and stopping just above mid-thigh, showcasing long, toned legs, black stiletto heels, and a fitted black leather jacket that molds perfectly to her slender frame, the shiny material adding an edge to her look. Beneath the jacket, her crisp white blouse is slightly unbuttoned at the top, giving a sophisticated yet casual vibe.

It isn’t long before The Phoenix spots her deranged identical twin just up ahead. Kimberly still hasn’t changed out of her wrestling gear. The Woman Scorned is still sporting her crimson red and black dragon themed ring gear. Marie picks up the pace and calls out before her sister can get away.

“Kim! Hey, Kim!”

Kimberly doesn’t stop walking. Did she not hear Marie or is she ignoring her? Marie calls out again.

“Kim! Hey, Kim!”

This time her twin sister does indeed stop dead in her tracks. Kimberly turns around as Marie approaches. Marie tries to read Kim as best as she can. Despite being identical twins, Kim is a very different animal. Kim and Marie were raised completely separate from one another in completely different households and environments. They are close but do not have that same eerie close bond that other identical twins seem to have. The smile that forms on Kim’s face, albeit somewhat creepy, does make Marie feel at least somewhat at ease.

“Kim, are you ok?”

“Sure, why wouldn’t I be?” Kim shrugs her shoulders. “I mean, yeah, I lost in the first round of Trios, but big deal? There are other ways I can spread my brand of chaos without a Trios Contract.”

“Well…I suppose that it’s good you’re taking it so well…”

“It isn’t like it’s my fault my team lost, or even Davey’s fault. We held up our end of the bargain. It’s Sean who couldn’t get the job done. I figured we might lose when I saw he was my partner.” Kim smirks. “But hey, I gained some very valuable knowledge after tonight.”

“What’s that?” Marie asks curiously.

“Me and Davey Boy Striker not only make great opponents but we make even better tag partners!” Kim grins devilishly. “Shit, maybe he and I can create chaos in the tag team division? And Amelia and Luz thought that the chaos ended with Twisted & Sadistic going on hiatus! Think of the gloriously beautiful chaos Davey and I could create together in the tag team division!”

“Oh, I see,” Marie sighs and shakes her head “uh, Kim, I hate to burst your bubble, but I think you forgot that you and I currently have other problems to deal with. Namely The Fall of Man?”

“Isn’t that a series on Netflix?”

“No,” Marie shakes her head “I’m talking about Heaven and his pals, Waylon and James and…”

“Oh!” Kim exclaims, acting as if a light bulb just went off over her head. “You mean Foghorn Leghorn, Hillbilly Jim, and the inbred crew?”

“Yes, them.” Marie nods her head. “We’re not done with them yet.”

“Correction, my dear sister…” Kim’s voice trails off before patting herself on the chest “...I am done with them.”

“What?!”

“You heard me.” Kim says. “I’m done.”

“Yeah, I heard you. And I heard it from mom, too. I just didn’t want to believe her. Are you honestly saying that you’re just going to let them get away with everything they’ve done?”

“Yes.” Kim nods her head as she speaks emphatically. “First of all, I am no hero. I am not a villain, either. But I am not a hero and I am not in the business of fighting every single saturday morning cartoon villain that crops up to cause trouble in SCW. I have my own agenda, namely causing chaos within this company. Fighting that idiot James Evans in every single fucking way imagineable, from one on one, to four way matches, now fighting him and his new pals, quite honestly I am bored with it. Worse still, all of that has distracted me from what I really wanted to do in SCW in the first place which is to cause as much chaos as possible. And you want to know what else?” Kim places a hand on Marie’s shoulder. “You shouldn’t fight them either.”

“What?!” Marie cannot believe the words coming from her sister’s mouth. “Are you serious?!”

“I am dead serious.” Kim nods her head. “Look, I’m not asking you to join me in my mission to create chaos. And I swear to you, I will always have your back, even if you choose to continue fighting those nitwits. But come on, look at you…you deserve better than to fight them. We both deserve better. You and I both need the Adrenaline and World Championships and we will both be Supreme Champions. Now chasing such accolades like that, it’s not my thing. But it’d be cool. And I know becoming Supreme Champion, or at least becoming SCW World Champion, that is damn sure your thing. Am I right?”

“Yeah…” Marie’s voice trails off.

“Right. And the longer you are distracted by the likes of Billy Heaven and his merry band of inbred rednecks, the longer it will take for you to achieve that goal. I’ve been competing in SCW for a long ass time now. You? You haven’t been back that long but already you have been very impressive. Why were you or I not considered to face Hudson for the World Title? I’m not taking anything away from Amy. She’s a worthy challenger. But it could have easily been you or me, and it might have been you or me, had CHBK not thought ‘well oh, those two are already busy dealing with that band of rejects from Deliverance, so let’s skip over them.’ And Marie, we will continue to be skipped over and overlooked until we move on from such ridiculousness.”

“I never thought of it like that.” Marie sighs deeply. “But, I still don’t feel right about just letting them get away with everything they’ve done…”

“...done to me, you mean.” Kim points out. “Sure, they attacked you, but it was all to get at me. They don’t care about you. This is all about me and quite frankly, I have no beef with them, I am ready to just give up, let them win, so I can move on with my own agenda, one that doesn’t have to do with any of them. And you? You should move on too. That’s my advice. Move on from them. You can achieve so much more. You are fully capable of becoming a champion again here in SCW. But you need to quit thinking that you have something to prove or a crusade to fight. You have nothing to prove. You have already redeemed yourself in the eyes of everyone who matters in the locker room and all of the fans. Your redemption journey is over, Marie. Time to win that World Title, time to win that Adrenaline Title. Hell, go after anything or anyone else. But just move on.”

“I don’t know…” Marie shakes her head.

“Don’t think too hard about it right now.” Kim pats her sister on the cheek. “Just focus on Gigi. That’s your next victim, right?”

“Yeah…” Marie nods her head.

“Perfect. Focus on spiking her head first onto the mat. Focus on kicking her ass and making a statement at the expense of a RECENTLY FORMER CHAMPION, huh?” Kim winks. “Prove to ol’ bag of bones CHBK that you…deserve…better.”

And with that, Kimberly Williams turns and starts to walk off. Marie considers going after her but decides against it. Kim wants to be alone right now and she can sense it. Besides, Kim is heading towards the dressing room area. She is no doubt going to be changing into her normal attire before leaving. Marie will probably see her again before the night is over. Still, she is surprised at the remarks from her identical twin. Kim wants to just leave this group the fall of man, she wants to leave them alone. She thinks she and Marie should just move on to something new. Kim already made it perfectly clear that SHE is moving on and has advised that Marie should do the same.

“Penny for your thoughts?”

The voice startles Marie for just a brief moment. She turns around but is pleasantly surprised to find her mother, the matriarch of the Jones family, the woman currently serving as advocate and manager for both Kim and Marie in SCW; the famous Angelica Jones. The usually elegant Angelica is dressed far more casually this evening in a pair of form fitting jeans, simple black flats, and a black blouse. Like Marie, Angelica is also wearing a fitted black leather jacket.

“Oh, hi mom…”

“I wasn’t being nosy, promise.” Angelica smirks. “I literally just walked in on the last little bit of that conversation between you and your sister. Is everything ok?”

“I guess.” The Phoenix. “It’s just that, I’m kind of surprised that Kim wants to simply give up and move on from that group The Fall of Man. It makes no sense.”

“It took me by surprise as well.” Angelica approaches Marie. “I don’t fully understand it myself but I have come to accept it….” she shrugs “...or accept Kim’s logic, anyway.”

“What logic?”

“First you have to understand that while Kim may be your identical twin, you two were raised in very different environments with a very different set of ideals. What motivates you and me may not motivate her. What drives her may not make sense to us. For whatever reason, she just doesn’t feel that this fight is worth it.”

“Do you agree with her?” Marie arches her brow out of curiosity.

“I do.” Angelica nods her head. “But I respect her independence and her decision. I won’t try to force her to fight.”

“So where does that leave me?” Marie sighs. “Part of me thinks I should continue fighting the good fight as they say, but I would be going it alone…”

“Kim will always have your back.” Angelica points out. “You know this.”

“Yes, and I know that means I probably pull her back into a fight she doesn’t want, which would make me feel guilty. So I don’t know what I should do.”

“Well one thing you can do in the immediate future is focus on Gigi.”

“That’s what Kim said.” Marie points out.

“And I agree with her on that. Gigi Steward is your next opponent. Don’t worry about Waylon or any of that other crew who runs with him. Focus on beating Gigi. Focus on getting that all important victory. Everything else is secondary…for now, at least.”

“Yeah…” Marie nods her head “...you’re right.” She sighs “But what about Kim?”

“Kim will be fine.” Angelica says. “She’s the toughest of us all. She will rebound. I know it.”

The words from Kimberly Williams and those from Angelica Jones, they echo in Marie’s mind. Does she want to continue to fight this battle or does she want to pursue singles success? She is no gold hog but she certainly has the goal of Supreme Championship squarely in her mind. But she wants to earn that opportunity. But to do that she will need to win the big matches. Gigi, a former champion, is a big match. And maybe Kim is right, maybe this group is just a big distraction from Marie fighting and earning her opportunities at success? Perhaps she should follow in Kim’s footsteps and just ignore them? It certainly is something to consider. But her number one priority, as both Kim and Angelica pointed out, should be and will be Gigi Steward. Marie looks to return to the winner’s circle next week on Breakdown.