SCW Underground Championship Breakdown Turmoil (Open to everyone)

[Wisteria Waltz]

OOC: Just want to clarify that I'm only entering Amelia Nevado into this match, so this RP is solely an Amelia effort.
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“Always be ready to compete. What I was taught. What I know I should do.”

A small part of Amelia Nevado was regretting those words.

Another part hated herself for falling back on that in the first place, as if she was back under her parents' thumbs all over again.

And yet, another part couldn't ignore the opportunity that now presented itself to her... and perhaps that one scared her most of all, because this felt like unfamiliar territory.

The setup was nothing new to her. A show-long marathon of pure chaos, operating with Underground Rules and championship gold as the prize. She and Luz had both been through this song and dance before... three years ago, when Kim Williams had used her Trios contract to invoke something similar. Had they succeeded in winning their first set of Tag Titles months earlier than they actually did, they would have had no choice but to participate to defend their newly-won gold. That didn't turn out to be the case, but as much as they had issues with the idea, they gave it their best shot anyway.

'And Luz ended up outshining you on that night, remember?'

Amelia growled at the reminder from that voice in her head that seemed all too eager to embrace the haughty attitude she always despised having to display when she was younger.

It wasn't wrong, though... Amelia had only managed to score two falls on that night while Luz had netted three, and had Kim not intentionally set the rules so that she automatically won the Underground Title by scoring a single fall, Luz would have had her first taste of singles gold so much sooner than she ultimately did.

She shrugged off the trip down memory lane, though, reminding herself of what followed that night. Kim had given Luz a shot at the title and proved, at least to The Light In The Darkness, that she truly did earn the right to be champion, and it wasn't long after that when Amelia found herself in the tournament to decide a brand new U.S. Champion.

That tournament seemed like a lifetime ago now... the last time she had a shot at singles gold until she cashed in her own Trios contract last year and gave her all towards trying to become World Champion.

'The last title opportunity you properly earned,' her 'perfect' self teased her from within.

Amelia huffed, tired of literally having this argument with herself. Yeah, there were semantics about using a contract to get a World Title shot, but she had intentionally waited until the last possible moment so she could feel like she'd earned the opportunity she was using it on, especially when the fact that her Trios win was forever tainted still burned in the pit of her soul.

She knew why that bothered her so much, though... why that nagging voice in her head just wouldn't let it go, why it was even questioning the path she was about to embark on.

It was all a path her parents would have disapproved of, and deep down, she was struggling harder and harder to justify that she'd truly earned the opportunity she was about to take.

This time around, though, there wouldn't be multiple titles up for grabs and she'd only have to finish in a certain place to lay claim to gold for herself at long last. There weren't certain members of the roster that were required to compete and would only cross her path if they chose to do so. It was only the Underground Title... a pin or submission at any point over whoever was holding the title would forever etch her name into the history books as an Underground Champion.

'How pathetic that you could exploit this to technically match Luz in singles title reigns in just one night,' her inner voice taunted her once more.

“That's not the goal and you know it!” she snapped at herself.

It was a couple of days until this Breakdown would emanate from Cleveland, Ohio, and while neither member of The Light In The Darkness was officially booked, Amelia just couldn't sit still and let a chance to step in the ring and finally prove herself pass her by. That was why she had secured permission to step into Huntington Bank Field, the home of the Cleveland Browns, and was currently alternating between full sprints and cooldown jogs up and down the stands.

She wasn't wrong about what she'd told herself: her goal wasn't to simply game the system and rack up a ton of short title reigns in one night just to match Luz in number. Quality over quantity was always what both halves of the couple strived for in the ring... that was why they always pushed themselves to try and have each subsequent title reign top the last, and it was why her one and only singles title reign in SCW still bothered her so much after all these years. A single TV Title reign for Amelia Nevado, ended in only 29 days... compared to Luz's own run with the belt, not to mention her two previous U.S. Title reigns all lasting almost 100 days each...

“I need to keep pushing myself...” she hissed between breaths. “I need to prove I can last a whole show... a true ironwoman feat...”

As Amelia pushed herself into another sprint, she knew what her true goal was by throwing herself into this chaos. It wasn't just about being the last one to hold the Underground Title and finally have singles gold to her name once more in hopes of putting this stupid idea of her being the weak link to rest once and for all. No... in her mind, if she really wanted to make a statement, show the world what she's capable of and prove that she's at least on an equal level to Luz and always has been this whole time, her best bet was to be the first to secure a fall and then prove she could survive the entire show with everyone hunting her, becoming the one and only Underground Champion this night would crown. If she did that, then maybe...

“Woo! Go Ames!”

Amelia faltered only briefly in her sprint down the steps, gaze snapping to the source of the cheering. Sure enough, Luz had claimed one of the seats near the bottom of the steps, right where she'd left her bag and water, and while she could pick up on the wariness hidden in her wife's support, the mere sight of Luz caused her heart to ache in ways that had nothing to do with how long she'd been out here pushing her cardio beyond its limits.

On one hand, it both touched and hurt her to see Luz still excitedly supporting her even after Amelia had been so distant and snippy lately.

On the other, Luz's mere presence only frustrated her more by reminding her of the unintentional gap between them she was struggling to close, even if that was hardly Luz's fault.

'She's only here to pity you,' her inner self claimed.

Amelia tried to shrug it off as she sprinted full speed down every step, attempting to narrow her thoughts down to a single one she'd latched onto ever since CHBK had announced this chaos as a means of motivation: Luz had succeeded where she had failed in becoming United States Champion, so maybe now it was her turn to succeed where Luz had failed and become Underground Champion.

Maybe then, she'd finally earn the same respect and recognition everyone was more than happy to give Luz.

“Looking good, mi amor,” Luz smiled gently as she applauded her wife when Amelia reached the bottom of the steps and grabbed her water bottle to rehydrate.

“What are you doing here, Lulu?” Amelia asked, unable to keep the bitter bite out of her voice that clearly caused Luz to flinch.

“Supporting the woman I love,” Luz pointed out, as if it wasn't already obvious. “Also wanted to make sure you're not pushing yourself too hard...”

“I'm fine,” Amelia bit back.

“And how long have you been out here running without a proper break?” Luz pressed. “And I don't mean quick water breaks, I mean a proper rest period.”

Amelia turned her gaze towards the football field below, knowing that would tell Luz all she needed to know. Pushing herself too hard... she knew it was a terrible habit she still struggled to break, and Luz could sympathize because she shared that issue herself, the both of them notorious for being way too hard on themselves when the setbacks began mounting. In Amelia's case, though, it had only been getting worse lately, and she knew Luz would consider herself a terrible partner if she hadn't noticed it. This wasn't simply a holdover from the days where her parents would push her beyond her breaking point until she either flawlessly succeeded or literally passed out from exhaustion, this was pushing herself exactly as hard as Aleister and Ophelia did for so many years, and she mentally cussed herself out for letting herself fall this far mentally that all of this felt necessary.

“Amelia, I'm sorry if this is getting on your nerves now, but I can't help but worry about you,” Luz said as gently as she could. Out of the corner of her eye, Amelia caught Luz reaching for her hands to try and gently stroke them, like she usually did to help ground her, but she hesitated, as if she was afraid to touch her own wife without explicit permission.

It was an image that twisted her heart in painful ways she hadn't experienced in a very long time.

“I mean it when I say you're the most talented wrestler I know,” Luz continued firmly. “We've gone through these rough patches before, and we've always bounced back. I know you're good enough to turn things around and kick so much butt in that ring. I just... I don't want to see you destroy yourself trying to force it. I mean... wanting to take part in this thing to try and become Underground Champion? I truly don't mean any offense when I say this Ames, but neither one of us is really too well-suited for that kind of environment outside of the occasional big match with such a stipulation.”

'I hate to admit it, but she's got a point,' the inner Amelia couldn't resist adding her own two cents. 'You're a wrestler, born of the most prestigious bloodline this sport has ever seen... not some filthy trash goblin.'

“Piss off...” Amelia growled, nails digging into her palm once she saw the movement that indicated Luz had flinched back once again. She couldn't stop herself from letting out a frustrated sigh. “I'm sorry, querida. I just... I'm just so tired of it all. Not being given the same respect you get when we've both worked ourselves to the bone trying to help carry SCW on our backs, somehow being overlooked for opportunities and being told I'm trying too hard when I attempt anything to carve my own path. Yeah, I know this isn't my usual comfort zone... but it wasn't the last time we did this either, just as it wasn't when you made Kim prove she deserved to hold that title even when you outscored her all those years ago. But it's a challenge I still want to try and overcome, just to keep proving what we both already know: that I'm just as good as you are solo in that ring.”

'You should be better than her-' that arrogant voice in her head tried to ruin the moment, but Amelia harshly bit her bottom lip to immediately distract her brain with the sudden pain she'd inflicted on herself. Thankfully, Luz seemed to have missed this, as Amelia was already uncomfortable at having to resort to such an act, no matter how small, just to get her own thoughts to leave her alone for a moment.

“I just don't want to see you get hurt,” Luz admitted, and the raw fear in her tone seemed to finally wrap itself around Amelia and anchor her in place. She knew exactly what Luz meant... it had nothing to do with the usual risks that came with being a wrestler, heightened in an environment like the one Amelia would soon find herself entering, but rather, the idea of letting all of this consume her to the point where she pushed herself way too hard and physically and mentally destroyed herself, perhaps even beyond repair this time.

'Just as I don't want to keep hurting you...' Amelia thought, trying to open her mouth to put a voice to those words, but for some reason, she couldn't get her jaw to cooperate.

'But you already have the perfect tool to do just that, don't you?' the 'perfect' Amelia felt inclined to chime in, and that intrusive thought ripped through Amelia like a bolt of lightning as she realized exactly what had stopped her from making an admission she knew she needed to make for the sake of her own sanity.

She thought back to when they were in Phoenix, forcing her brain to ignore the frustrating reminder of her unsatisfying 'win' over Clyde Sutter. She still didn't want to fully believe it yet without undeniable proof, but it made her skin crawl how obvious it seemed that Paul, the overenthusiastic fan who had fallen under their protection after being targeted by The Empire, was actually an undercover spy serving the whims of the deranged cult. Too many inconsistencies were lining up now: the fact that these religious zealots were after some seemingly random guy for reasons even he didn't seem to know, the drastic decrease in what little Empire resurgence had emerged in over half a year the moment Paul was being protected by their little found family... it even explained why some of Paul's comments felt like they went beyond just being a very overzealous and slightly misguided fan wanting her and Luz to be the absolute best and felt almost like the gaslighting they'd come to know painfully well from some of The Empire's more dangerous members.

She wanted, more than anything, to put a voice to this information, to tell Luz and everyone else about Paul's true intentions. It would help explain why The Empire's members seemed to stay one step ahead of any efforts to track down their hidden base if Paul had glimpses of Avery, Darius and Evie's tracking plans. It would explain why Caleb's sudden phone call to Luz that set her off seemed so perfectly timed, especially if it gave Paul a window to slip away and insert himself into the conversation Darius had tried to have with her around that same time.

She knew what was holding her back, though... for as much as she struggled against her own frustrations towards her wife in regards to their SCW careers and how things had played out thus far, she knew that revealing this bombshell discovery could cause more harm than good.

On paper, the whole ploy seemed designed to take advantage of Luz's unyielding kindness and ability to try and see the good in everyone. What better way to slip a spy into their ranks than by inventing a scenario where Luz would feel compelled to help someone in need, right? If Luz knew her kindness had been taken advantage of that easily after it had done nothing but mold her into the brilliant light of everyone's lives she tried to be, Amelia feared the kind of emotional damage that would cause.

There was also the fact that she would have to convince everyone that there was truth to this and she wasn't just blowing a gasket at Paul for testing boundaries... normally, such doubt would seem absurd as these were the people closest to her, but not only had she been doing herself no favors lately with how frustrated and moody she'd become while trying to get anything going in her favor in SCW, but this was another issue that relied on how Luz would react to this revelation without solid proof, no matter how much Paul was starting to wear on everyone's patience.

'Pathetic, isn't it?' that nagging voice in her head just had to speak up once more. 'You have the perfect chance to weed out this spy now and actually do something useful for once, and you're hesitating all because you don't want Luz's precious little feelings to get hurt. Even outside the ring, she's so important that you're left to spiral and it's a secondary concern to her feelings. So much for never showing weakness...'

“It's more complicated than that and you know it...” Amelia huffed under her breath in response. Unfortunately, she'd completely forgotten that she'd just been standing there in pure silence for a long minute, not even responding to Luz's raw admission, all because her thoughts had been spiraling over what she knew and was afraid to share purely out of fear for how her wife would react to it.

The conflicted look in Luz's eyes told the story... she was completely unaware that Amelia had seemingly fallen to the point of literally arguing with someone acting like her past self within her own head, so she was left to interpret her concerns for her beloved being 'more complicated' than just admitting that she was genuinely afraid and worried about her.

“Regardless...” Luz tried to carry on anyway, but there was a noticeable crack in her voice, as if she was fighting to hold back tears. “I swear to you, on my mask, that I won't get involved in this, Amelia. I already have a title... this one is yours to earn, on your own, and I really do hope you walk out of this city on Thursday night finally able to call yourself a singles champion too. You've got this...”

The fading enthusiasm that Luz had been clinging to all the way up to this point felt like a knife to the heart, and by the time Amelia fully snapped out of the shock it had left her with, Luz was already leaving the stadium so she could resume her workout alone. Amelia reached out to her, started to call for her, but her mouth once again refused to cooperate... almost as if she were a puppet all over again, only this time, the strings were being pulled by the intrusive thoughts corroding her mind that were clearly winning that war.

'You see that?' the other Amelia prodded from her thoughts. 'You hurt her feelings by keeping things from her, just as you know you're going to hurt everyone keeping such valuable information about The Empire and what they've done to yourself. No matter how many times you claim otherwise to anyone who will listen, you're no hero... you've barely changed at all from the person you were raised to be.'

“I'm a terrible person...” Amelia finally choked out in response after a long moment.

As the Cleveland sky shifted and rain suddenly began pouring down on her, no matter how much the thought made her want to puke... she knew, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that it was true.

And perhaps that realization hurt worst of all.