Aisling & Alex Belmont(?) vs. Light in the Darkness

[Wisteria Waltz]

They were beaten, battered, bloodied and broken...

And yet, they continued to stand tall in defiance of everything and everyone who sought their absolute destruction.

This year's Fatal Fortunes was in the books, and there was no surprise that all of their loved ones were horrified by the state Luz and Amelia were in once tonight's Breakdown had wrapped up. The state they'd been left in after the Fall of Man's attack on them two weeks ago had been hard enough to watch, but the grizzly sight of blood pouring down their faces as cuts, bruises and welts lined their bodies and only added to the pain they were still enduring from those prior injuries... it had been a hard pill to swallow for many of them.

Perhaps none more than Camila, who had all but used her position as a doctor to force her way into the trainer's room and demanded that Dr. Okafor let her help in tending to their wounds. Surprisingly, the head trainer had relented, likely due to the fact that SCW was well aware of Camila's years of experience in the field of medicine and she knew better than anyone how to patch up her own daughter. There was also the fact that James and Waylon probably needed to be looked at too, as well as Derek Adonis who had also been busted open, and having all of those combustible elements in the same space was just begging for a violent disaster to happen.

The whole time the couple had been herded from the trainer's room back to their own locker room by Camila, Marilyn, Henry and Emily, Luz found herself unconsciously biting her bottom lip so hard she questioned if she'd drawn blood or if the metallic taste was from the blood that had already been running beneath her shredded mask. It brought her mind back to the days when she was a little girl and had watched the frustrated conversations between her parents over how hard El Espíritu Angélico kept pushing himself in the ring, even when it was clear he might've been hurt... back to the days when she and her mom had butted heads themselves when Luz went against her wishes and joined the business anyway, with any moments like this becoming ammunition Camila would use to justify why she wanted her daughter to reconsider the decision.

At some point during the walk, Amelia had reached over and taken Luz's hand, perhaps sensing her wife's concerns and trying her best to comfort her. It was easier said than done considering that for as much pain as they were both in right now, it hurt even more in their hearts to see each other's pretty faces covered in blood, but Luz smiled in response to the gesture all the same. Deep down, she knew her relationship with her mother had come a long way in terms of healing over the past year and a half, and the older woman was very much entitled to her concerns over her daughter's well-being, but there was still those hints of fear buried deep down about all of that coming undone if Camila was so justifiably afraid of Luz getting seriously hurt that things relapsed into where they used to be.

Eventually, the group had finally made it to the locker room designated for The Light In The Darkness, and Luz and Amelia were seated on one of the benches. Camila asked them to try to relax before she dictated orders to the others to help out while she ran back to her car to retrieve her medical bag, and the frantic activity was a surprising reminder of just what the couple had around them now. Granted, it had been quite some time since either one of them had been in a state like this, but they had seen their found family rally together around them when James and Waylon had tried to break them in half two weeks ago and they were just as stunned now at how ready and willing everyone was to patch them up good as new. Some might believe it was stupid to keep being stunned by how much they were loved and care for beyond each other, but given that one another was all they'd really had in that department for what felt like forever, they were still working to shed the trauma and concerns over how much that bubble of care had truly grown over the past few years now.

It also made it even sadder to them how much certain people out there wanted to destroy that for their own selfish reasons.

Despite the state they were coming out of it in, this year's Fatal Fortunes had proven to be a step in the right direction for The Light In The Darkness. Once again, they had found themselves staring down a rather hefty challenge not just through the sheer number of bookings but also in the form of what actually got drawn for them this year, but this time they had come through it all with an incredible clean sweep. Luz had successfully gotten through the first defense of her interim U.S. Title as well as finally showing off her submission skills from having Amelia in her life for so long, and Amelia herself had gotten to team with Xander one more time to endure a First Blood Match.

And yet, all of that paled in comparison to the fact that their World Tag Title reign was still alive after enduring that Clockwork Orange House of Fun Match and proving that, when push came to shove, they would not back down and could not only survive everything that the Fall of Man had to throw at them, but they could return the favor if those two men wanted such a fight that badly. For all the pain they were in, for all the efforts of James, Waylon, and even Billy earlier in the night with his steel chair shot, Amelia Nevado and La Pequeña Luz had endured and stood tall at the end of the night.

In the back of Amelia's mind, she hoped that Caleb and his cronies were watching, because she knew this was only a preview of just how hard it was to put her and her beloved out of commission, and she wanted that sight of them standing tall despite being beaten and bloodied to forever burn itself into that madman's brain as a warning of his inevitable failure if he really wanted to keep trying to destroy their lives.

“OK, you two,” Camila said as Amelia and Luz snapped out of their thoughts and realized she had returned. “I'm going to need you both to stay sitting upright for me while we get you cleaned up. This is going to sting and I apologize for that, but I want to make sure these cuts won't get infected before we get you all stitched up. If you need me to stop for a moment then please, please let me know, but the sooner we get you patched up the better. ¿Está bien?”

“Sí, mamá,” Luz replied while Amelia slowly nodded.

Camila got right to work, directing Henry—who admitted he knew a thing or two about patching up wounds because of the “tough love” his uncle had shown him, giving everyone yet another reason to hate Caleb White's existence with a furious passion—and Emily—who had been showing more of an interest in the medical field lately the more she'd spent time around Camila—with anything she needed help with while Marilyn made sure the couple stayed upright and conscious while they were taken care of. While it did sting as the bleeding wounds courtesy of James Evans were dealt with, both women were in agreement that it was nothing compared to all the other pain they had felt at the hands of both him and Waylon Creek over the past several weeks.

It was weird to look back on their time in SCW, including the few months they had been here back in late 2020 to early 2021, and it had taken this long to find themselves dealing with anyone who felt it necessary to target them, not in the sense of wanting to face them or pursuing whatever championship gold they held, but simply because they believed The Light In The Darkness had to be destroyed and that's all there was to it. Heck, even throughout their entire careers this felt like the first time they'd found themselves in this kind of situation. The closest comparison they could draw, at least in terms of wrestling, still led them back to either Amelia's parents or The Empire at large, and even then, the only destruction that had been sought was the desire to erase the couple's reputations and replace it with anything of their own design.

Outside the ring was a much different story, but that was just how Caleb operated. Misdirect, gaslight, and get away from any wrongdoing looking like the ultimate saint while someone else took the fall, then clean up the remaining mess and move on. It was a truly disgusting pattern that left them wondering how the man could even live with himself for every drop of blood he's ever spilled in the name of his “righteous mission,” but that was just it... thinking all the way back to the day when they had taken Caleb down earlier this year, he had claimed that he couldn't live with himself but was just doing what he claimed God had instructed him to do, truly believing that if he could 'save' Luz and Amelia from their 'sins' then that alone would be enough to 'redeem' him and earn his place in Heaven once his time finally came.

“It's disgusting to think that James is so much like that God-touting monster, it's not even funny...” Luz mumbled as her hands ran along the jagged edges of what remained of her mask.

“You know I've been in this business for a very long time,” Marilyn replied as she offered another hand for Luz to squeeze as Camila worked on stitching her up, “and despite some of my own violent and gory feuds over the years, I don't think I've ever seen anyone quite like that James Evans guy... and I'd tell him to his face that's not a compliment.”

“The saddest part is that he blames me for the way he is now,” Amelia sighs before hissing a bit from Emily's efforts to clean her other wounds. “All because of that accident that saw him get badly injured that I've already beaten myself up for ever since...”

“Which you know he doesn't care about because it doesn't fit the narrative he wants to spin,” Henry stated as he handed Emily a roll of medical tape. “Sadly, all he needs to do is start acting like he and Waylon are doing any of this in the name of God and he might as well be no different than my uncle.”

“But you are not responsible for what that man has become,” Camila firmly added. “James willingly chose to be a monster in response to it, just as Caleb willingly chose to believe he was some sort of sociopathic 'cleanser' of the human race. They only blame others because they refuse to take responsibility for things they know are wrong in some desperate bid to justify any heinous acts as necessary and right.”

Amelia let out a shaky breath in response, and Luz squeezed her hand tighter. It was a concept they had both struggled with and others had knowingly preyed upon in the past, namely Amelia's parents in any attempts to justify why they treated her and her siblings the way they did, but Luz was no stranger to it herself. From others using her quirky nature as an excuse to bully her all the way up to trying to claim that Luz herself was somehow responsible for her father's death despite being no more than a spectator on that fateful night, she knew the burden of thinking that she had a hand in creating the monsters that surrounded her growing up and constant reminders like the one her mother had just given were the only thing keeping both her and Amelia together in the face of it.

Luz briefly pondered if some therapy might help with this, but she quickly shelved the thought because what therapist would even deal in matters that had their roots in a religious cult that, unfortunately, was active once again?

“Cariño, do you have a spare mask?” Camila asked, dragging Luz back out of her thoughts. “You're going to have to take that one off to finish cleaning your face.”

“I always have a few spares, just in case,” Luz replied. “I liked this one, though... curse James and Waylon...”

“You love all your masks, Lulu,” Amelia painfully chuckled.

“What can I say? They're a part of me,” Luz grinned despite the blood she knew she still needed to clean up. Amelia couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief at seeing her wife's more joyous demeanor back once again despite everything.

“Good to see you both in good spirits, all things considered,” Henry noted.

“Yeah, what the heck was that out there?” Emily couldn't resist asking. “We know you two can get angry, and Ed and I know firsthand how scary that can be when we're on the wrong side of it, but what you guys did out there, it... it was so unlike you...”

“It's not something we plan on making a habit of,” Amelia replied. “It's just... we had the environment, we knew Waylon wasn't going to hesitate given what they did two weeks ago with just their bare hands, and we knew James wouldn't resist getting involved to help because he could. We had every reason to make them understand that they weren't going to end us no matter how hard they tried, so we just...” Amelia couldn't keep herself from sighing again. “I hated having to do that, but truth be told, we probably wouldn't have survived otherwise.”

“It almost hurt as much to be that angry as it did when they did what they did to us,” Luz lamented. “I don't like hating people and letting that get the better of me... but... those two and William Heaven just make it so hard not to...”

“Unfortunately, there's just people like that out in the world, as you both know,” Marilyn grimly stated, and everyone knew who she was referring to. “I know it's hard, but you both did what you had to in order to pull through.”

“You know James is going to use this against us, though,” Amelia huffed as Camila began working on stitching her up. “The fact that we got violent, ignoring the fact that he's the reason we were both busted open in the first place among what else he and Waylon tried to do to intentionally injure us or end our careers tonight... the fact that the only reason we even won that match is because of Derek...”

“Then let him spew his nonsense,” Henry told her and Luz. “It's like you said: he's no different than Caleb is. What you both did out there was justified purely to survive what you knew they were going to do, and you're allowed to be angry and take it out on the people who pushed you too far when SCW gives you the platform to resolve it. It's no different than anytime Caleb wants to use you two to justify the pain and suffering he inflicts: he was a monster who deserved to be locked away, and that's exactly what we did to him. We were justified in stopping his so-called mission, just as the two of you are justified to live your lives how you want to, including being in love with each other. Let them spout their delusional beliefs... those who truly know who Amelia Nevado and La Pequeña Luz are won't pay it any mind because they're too smart to fall for it, and eventually, those who do will realize how wrong they were...”

Everyone in the room picks up on the way Henry trails off near the end, and it's not hard to tell he's still harboring some resentment towards himself for how easily he bought into everything his uncle fed to him growing up. Luz is the first to move, slowly standing up and catching herself as she stumbles for a moment from all the blood she's lost tonight before she carefully makes her way over to Henry. He looks at her in confusion for a moment before she throws herself at him in a hug, further surprising him. No words need to be said, however, and he understands what she's trying to do before he carefully returns the hug. Once Camila's finished stitching up Amelia, she helps the younger woman to her feet before they both go to hug Luz and Henry as well.

“You guys didn't have to-” Henry started before Amelia cut him off.

“We may not even be here if it wasn't for you, Henry.”

“You're just as much a victim as everyone else,” Luz added.

“Ay, we really need to figure something out for you kids...” Camila sighed. “This isn't healthy...”

“Nor is what The Empire's doing, but unfortunately, that's the hand we've been dealt and we're just going to have to play until we can finally put an end to this nightmare,” Marilyn admitted.

Camila could only nod, sadly admitting to herself what Luz had already realized earlier about the possibility of therapy for what they were involved in, whether they liked it or not.

“Well, at least you two are all patched up now,” Emily pointed out, “and I'd say you both have earned a good night's rest after... all of that. Plus, I think Gage and Ed need the reassurance that you're alright.”

“I do need to get out of what's left of this mask, anyway,” Luz sheepishly admitted. “Give us a moment to gather up our stuff and we can head back to the hotel.”

“Actually...” Camila cut in before Luz could move away once they'd all separated from the group cooldown hug for Henry. “Could I have some privacy to speak with you and Amelia for a moment, mija?”

Luz audibly gulped at this and turned to look at the others for help, but Marilyn was already heading for the door, knowing it wasn't her place. She motioned for Emily and Henry to join her, the former nodding in understanding while the latter looked confused even when Marilyn could be heard saying she'd explain it to him later as they closed the door behind them. Amelia, for her part, stood strong and kept a tight hold on Luz's hand, even gently rubbing her thumb along the knuckles like they always did to help comfort one another.

“Please, mija... you can change your mask now,” Camila spoke gently. “I know what the face of mi preciosa bebe looks like... and you know I won't tell a soul.”

Luz nodded as Amelia respectfully closed her eyes and turned away from her wife. She didn't have to, given that she had seen Luz without her mask as well, but Luz wasn't sure if Camila was aware of that fact or not and Amelia seemed willing to at least honor tradition to maintain the illusion just in case. It seemed clear that it wasn't going to leave this room regardless, so Luz started to slowly undo the strings on the back of her mask before carefully pulling it off, looking down at the tattered remains in mourning. She moved to grab one of the towels still lying around to gently wipe off any remaining blood on her face before digging around in her bag. A few moments later, and her face was once again covered, the fact that the colors of this mask clashed horribly with her ring attire for tonight irrelevant as she started moving to change into her street clothes, with Amelia following suit once she got confirmation that Luz's face had a mask on once more. There was still a palpable tension in the room, and it led to Camila finally breaking the silence with a sad sigh.

“Lo siento, mija,” she finally said. “I know what's probably going through your head, and I didn't mean to unnecessarily add any more stress tonight.”

Luz and Amelia exchanged glances for a moment.

“What do you mean, mom?” Luz asked, confused.

“I remember how this has all played out in the past,” Camila replied. “The few times you've ever gone through a match that's left you bleeding or badly hurt... I would immediately jump all over you for it, trying to convince you that it's be safer for you to hang up the mask and boots and just forget about wrestling. You probably thought I would do the same thing now... didn't you?”

“I...” Luz began before trailing off, her worries showing through loud and clear as she took a deep breath to try and recompose herself. “I hate to say it, but... the thought might have crossed my mind when you demanded to take over in stitching us up. Lo siento...”

“No, no bebe, I'm the one who should be apologizing,” Camila insisted. “Even if I was justified in being afraid after what happened to your father, I was wrong to take that out on you and keep trying to force you to follow a different path. I see the effect it's had on you and... dios mío, it hurts my heart to see you be afraid of me because of it.”

“You had good intentions,” Amelia noted.

“Yeah,” Luz nodded in agreement. “I know you're worried about me mom... yeah, maybe it wasn't the best approach because of the rift it drove between us for so long, but I think it's painfully clear none of us are perfect and we're all prone to making mistakes.”

“And we're all capable of learning from them,” Camila noted as she planted a gentle kiss on Luz's forehead, where her stitches were beneath her mask, before repeating this with Amelia. “I just wanted a moment to reassure you both that while I am worried, especially if things keep escalating with those bastards or The Empire or... or... anyone else, really... it doesn't change the fact that I am very proud of the incredible young women you've both become in spite of everything over the years. The fight you both keep showing each and every day... it truly is inspiring, and as much as I needed to tell you this, mija, I wanted to make sure Amelia heard it as well. Lord knows I need to be a better mother than Ophelia Blythe could ever be.”

“You already are,” Amelia grinned as she moved to hug Camila again.

“Still... thank you, Mamá,” Luz added as she joined the hug. “I wish I could promise we won't make a habit of this, but...”

“Eh, I know nights like tonight aren't common in this sport,” Camila admitted. “And even if they were... you've long since proven how strong and resilient you are, Mi Pequeña Luz. You and Amelia both. It's just hard as your mother not to worry so much... you'll both understand when you make me an abeula someday.”

Luz and Amelia both turned crimson at that, and Camila couldn't help but laugh at the reaction. They couldn't hold it against her, though... she had parental rights to playful teasing about her daughter's relationship, and it was hard to argue about how effective it was at cutting away any tension that may have been lingering in the air.

As they all finished gathering their things and began to leave the Rogers Place behind, Luz and Amelia mentally started turning their attention to what lie in front of them. Wrestling-wise, there was no shortage of challenges with Fatal Fortunes now in the books. They weren't too sure what the status was regarding Aisling Reed and Alex Belmont after the latter was inexplicably attacked earlier tonight, but hopefully they would have some answers there sooner rather than later. Beyond that random pairing that had earned a shot at their Tag Titles, there was also the matter of Luz having Asher Hayes at some point as the next threat for her interim U.S. Title reign, and a very credible threat at that to her goal of getting that unification match with Deanna. It was also hard to believe that tonight resolved anything regarding the Fall of Man given that they had only won because Derek Adonis, understandably, did not want to share that gold with the same man who nearly broke his neck some time back.

Add in the matters outside the ring with The Empire still lurking in the shadows now that Caleb was free, no doubt plotting their next move, and there was plenty of reason for the couple to be worried about the future.

“Luz? Amelia?”

The couple were pulled from their thoughts once again as they found themselves out in the parking lot, seeing their found family waiting for them. Gage and Edward looked incredibly relieved to see them patched up while Ivy just looked amused by their reactions, and Emily and Henry were talking with Valentina while Marilyn had been discussing something with Avery, who had their phone out, but the emergence of the Nevados had drawn their attention enough for them to speak and approach them.

“Is everything alright, Avery?” Amelia asked.

“We're not sure, to be honest...” the FBI agent admitted.

“Did something happen?” Luz questioned.

“More like someone happened,” Marilyn tossed out as the rest of the group began to converge around them now in curiosity. “A certain wannabe wrestling journalist, to be exact.”

Luz couldn't help but groan as Amelia and Camila patted her back. “What the heck did he do this time?”

“Nothing yet... well, not exactly...” Avery sighed. “When he was interrogated some time back, we gave him a number to call if he ever changed his mind about actually playing along and not hiding behind some NDA that holds no weight given why we had him in custody. He actually called it after Breakdown ended tonight.”

“And...?” Amelia raised an eyebrow, her confusion evident in her voice. “Is that a good thing, or...?”

“Avery's not sure,” Marilyn threw out. “And Avery not being sure isn't usually a good sign, in my own personal experience.”

“OK, we might need to talk and unpack some things sooner rather than later, Marilyn... if you're willing, that is...” Avery replied, stunning Marilyn completely as they turned their focus back to Luz and Amelia. “He said he's finally willing to talk, but his terms were that we meet him in Baltimore to do so...”

“Wait... that's where next week's Breakdown is...” Amelia realized.

“Yup,” Avery confirmed. “And he also wants the two of you present... he made a bunch of claims to the contrary when I reminded him that he's still under a restraining order regarding the two of you, but his biggest reasoning was that he claims he wants to properly apologize to you both face-to-face, and with at least me present then he couldn't try anything even if he wanted to. He's hoping that apologizing and finally sharing whatever he's been hiding from us this whole time, especially now that we're pretty certain about who his 'insider source' was all along, will allow him to negotiate to get the restraining order dropped entirely.”

“You're not going to consider that, are you?” Camila bluntly asked.

“Seriously,” Luz added. “Even if Jacob was just another tool being used to get to us, he still proved he's a major creep regardless.”

“I never confirmed that dropping the restraining order was even on the table at all,” Avery clarified. “He's just assuming he can bargain for it, and I'm willing to just let him keep believing it if it means we can finally get him to talk after all this time. I hate to involve either of you at all, though, especially since your focus should be on whatever's next for the both of you, but... if he's got anything at all that could help us get the jump on The Empire before they finally strike anew...”

“As long as he can't try anything, we're willing to help,” Amelia confirmed.

“Yeah,” Luz agreed. “And hopefully he's smart enough not to try anything.”

“You both do have my permission to kick his ass yourselves if necessary,” Avery grinned. “Maybe a bit unprofessional on my part, but... I'd be willing to look the other way if it gets the point across.”

Luz and Amelia both nodded, personally not wanting to have to deal with Jacob Harrison anymore, but knowing that even something small could give them a huge advantage in trying to put an end to The Empire's deranged plans, whatever they may be, once and for all. And if he was willing to apologize for invading their privacy and slandering their names on his crazed witch hunt, then they would at least be willing to give him one chance.

Everybody deserved at least one chance to make amends and turn over a new leaf, after all...

And if they refused to take it?

Then Luz and Amelia had no problem fighting even harder to prove that the kind of future they desired was worth every last drop of blood, sweat and tears they were willing to shed to earn it, no matter how many people like James Evans, Waylon Creek, or even Caleb White they would have to fight through in order to make it a reality.