07-23-2023, 04:51 PM
OOC: Part 4
DISCLAIMER: The following is a work of fiction and not to be confused as complete or accurate representation of any beliefs, religions, etc. Please refer to research/articles by experts for that.
Fairmount Royal York Hotel
Toronto, Ontario
July 21st, 2023
6:02am
Selena’s head snapped up, the Snow Queen giving the barest gasp as she was ripped back into the conscious world, her sapphire eyes scanning the large suite wildly as she recovered from her nightmare. Without really ‘taking everything in’, her gaze swept over the white and black designs of the carpet, the white walls, couch, the beige curtains and the dark that rested beyond the window that was beside her as she sat on said couch.
How long had she been asleep? Immediately, her attention was thrown back to the glowing computer screen that stood before her, the laptop still aglow and on holding her previous activity of tabs, videos and word document. Selena ignored all of that, choosing instead to zero in on the clock at the bottom-right corner of the screen.
Twelve minutes… she mentally calculated, though even that felt exhausting to the Snow Queen, forcing her to rub her eyes with one hand/palm as she yawned quietly. However, a second yawn quickly saw her checking the few empty cans that surrounded the laptop, the platinum-blonde eyeing the empty white and silver Monster Zero drinks, even tapping a few of them to see if there was any that were even half-full.
A fruitless endeavor, she gathered, as she usually just downed the drink as soon as she opened it so she could refocus and get back to task. With a sigh, the world champion pushed herself off the couch, feeling her several different parts of her body pop or crack under the movement after being idle for so long…
How long? She didn’t want to process that just yet as she moved the few steps through the ‘lounge’ area of the master suite of the Fairmount Royal York Hotel, her feet aching a little as she reached the mini-fridge she had brought into the room upon ‘special request’. Opening the door, she pulled out another Monster Zero drink, lowering her count within the fridge to, it looked like, five.
I may have to get more. She thought to herself as she gave the can three taps on the top with her finger before opening it. That or have a heart-attack or something. She mentally added cynically before tipping the can up to drink from it. She didn’t feel any rush from the energy drink – they were usually a ‘shot in the dark’ in their effectiveness at this point. Sometimes they worked, other times they just made her more tired. Still, it would keep her up for a bit more time… I hope. she thought as she returned to the couch with her drink, eyeing the door that lead to the bedroom (where she knew Deanna was sleeping), followed by the window nearby her.
Quietly, her eyes took in the latter, seeing the Toronto towers and skyline. In many ways, the Canadian city was a lot like her home in Manhattan. So busy. Construction, people, an urban giant, as it were – though New York was SO much bigger than this place. Still, she could admire it… at least as much as she could in her exhausted state – the thought causing her to leave her ‘gazing’ to focus back on her screen, changing it over to the word document she had been working on.
Her last promo.
Another sigh escaped her as she gazed at the jumble of words before her, the page filled with random points and ideas about so much: SCW, Rise to Greatness, the world title, her history with both… Kandis.
Again, another sigh escaped her at the thought of her upcoming opponent, the platinum-blonde waiting for the energy drink to kick in as, with one finger, she impatiently, repeatedly clicked the ‘K’ button with her finger, watching it produce the letter on the screen over and over again.
She had lost track of how many hours she had put into this laptop, from watching videos to working on her promo script… and she only had another eight or so hours before she had to film her final ‘Frozen Central’ of the SCW season.
The schedule annoyed her. Usually, she would have waited till the day of the event as a sort of ‘set-up’ for the pay-per-view, but because of Rise to Greatness having not only its Pre-Show and Hall of Fame on the Saturday, which involved Deanna’s first match (the one for the United States Title, which Selena could not afford to miss), not to mention the meet-and-greets that she had to do through the weekend as part of the Rise to Greatness festivities, she had been forced to move her ‘filming time’ to earlier in the week – which now was later today…
And all she had was pages upon pages of rants to throw at Kandis.
With a sigh, Selena sat back against the couch. She had tried so hard to keep ‘calm’ and ‘composed’ throughout her first promo, everything she had done from choosing to film from her Manhattan home to being dressed in a black suit – a sort of metaphorical armor of ‘elegance’ to try and keep her composure – and yet she still had let a little of her frustration and rage seep through. And, yes, she was prepared to do that in the ring and to deal with Kandis accordingly… but it was getting harder and harder to focus on the most important task at hand!
Promoting the ‘Unbelievable Main Event III’ and then winning the damn match!
Another sigh and Selena gently pulled up the front of her baggy, black, ‘Skillet’ band t-shirt (a good two sizes larger than it needed to be to fit her lithe frame), pulling the garment up to wrap around the top of her head, creating a sort of ‘curtain’ in front of her eyes. Seeing only black, the Snow Queen sat further back against the couch, quietly breathing as she starred into the absence of color. She could just barely make out the glowing light of her laptop beyond the shirt-wall as she rocked back and forth against the back cushion.
She needed rest, and she knew it.
She needed to finish this promo, and she knew it.
She needed to settle things with Deanna so neither of them would be distracted for their matches, and she knew it.
She needed to win her match… and she knew it.
Since they had checked into the hotel a few days ago, Selena had lost track at how many nights she had spent out here, and how many times she had raided a convenience store or two to ‘refill’ her mini-fridge with energy drinks. But how could she do anything else? Everything was so… out of control! Worse than last year when she had face Adam Allocco. Sure, she hadn’t liked the man – still didn’t like him or even respect him – but at the time, things were decent! The fans were all for ‘integrity’ in SCW, the match was really ‘skill vs. skill’ and, while she had lost, there was, undisputedly, so much less pressure on her shoulders! Sure, she had wanted to retain, but if she had to lose the world title, going out at RTG being beaten cleanly? That was the way to go.
Not the case this time around. This time around, Kandis had played every trick to get inside Selena’s head, almost – if not on the level – of Ravyn, Xander and Vixen Cain, of all people. The SCW world was abuzz, not so much whether or not Selena could beat Kandis – there was little doubt that she was capable of that considering how far the Snow Queen had come this year to get back the world title, but rather she was going to ‘crack’ or not.
A scoff escaped the Snow Queen. “Crack…” she whispered into her shirt before pulling it back down off her head to, once more stare at the screen. She didn’t bother to erase the line of ‘K’s she had previously typed in her rut of silence, instead choosing to push the ‘up’ button to head the document to its beginning. Crack… that’s what people were talking about. Whether or not Selena Frost would ‘crack’ under all the crap and controversy and just… just…
She stopped her ascent of the document. She wasn’t even sure what she would do if she supposedly did ‘crack’. The notion had come to her after Mr. Drach- O.! she reminded herself with disdain at the SCW ‘boss’ – had chosen CHBK as the special guest referee for her match with Kandis. Gods, she had been so angry! How could O. have chosen him?! It made even less sense than Ace Marshall being in the goddamn Hall of Fame! At least, to some degree, Ace had accomplished SOME respectful things in SCW, like being the only person to win the Taking Hold of the Flame Battle Royale twice, as well as other accolades – though she despised him as a person.
But CHBK?! There was NO sense in that! The man had been in Infamous’ pocket for how many years?! How many people had he screwed out of the world title? How many people had he lied to and cheated?! The man knew NOTHING of integrity and O. had chosen him?!
Of course Selena had been enraged! Here she was now, weeks later, and STILL unable to think about it without feeling herself getting worked up! She had marched down to the ring, gotten in both the faces of the old men and said…and said…
Well, she had said a lot, but when she had reached the point she had WANTED to discuss, what she would do if CHBK screwed her out of the ‘Unbelievable Main Event’, she had faltered. Because she…. She just didn’t know what she was going to. It was strange. Nothing about these last few months made sense to her. She kept feeling like she was living in some kind of madhouse with SCW or some warped episode of ‘The Twilight Zone’ where everything was backwards and kept shifting and shifting around! Maybe that was why she was having such difficulty doing what was, normally, easy for her in writing her promo. It wasn’t just about being stretched in so many different directions, putting out so many fires thanks to the controversies and whatever that SCW was swarming with… but because she didn’t know what she would do – or what her place would be – when this weekend was all over.
Was there even a place for her if she lost?
She wasn’t so sure anymore. After her loss last year, that had not even been a question. Of course there was! She could look after other divisions, giving the world title a break and letting others step up and take on the responsibility of keeping the standard where she had lifted it to in her record-breaking reign. She could team with Deanna and make The House of Frost tag-team champions, as well as helping her wife be a better singles wrestler in the ring. There had been so many options available to her after last year’s Rise to Greatness and, for the most part, she had been excited for all of them.
Now? Like a few weeks ago, she didn’t know what she was going to do if she lost. Imagining Adam Allocco as world champion back in June had been hard enough, but Kandis? A woman with no class, morals, or integrity? Running around with the title being wrapped around her ass?! After everything she had said, bragged about, the scandals-
Selena shook her head, again feeling her blood boiling at the thought, her hands reaching up to rub at her temples in irritation, until the emotion eventually settled back into the sadness over the unknown.
Was there a place for her in an SCW that rewarded superstars like that? Did Selena even want to be in a place where that was considered ‘acceptable’? No. She had always been so… so proud to be an SCW superstar. Yes, she hadn’t started with the most talent or ability – hell, a glorified power ranger had beaten her in her first match nearly ten years ago. She had been so green and inexperienced, she was surprised she had lasted the first month without being called out on her ‘lack of ability’. But, as the months and years passed and she kept working at it, training for it, and seeing it for the honor that it was – being an SCW superstar – she had learned to not only love SCW and the SCW Universe, but to see it as something… special. Something to aspire to. To inspire others.
Again, O.’s words rang in her head. The idea that SCW was changing now. That it was becoming something else. That people didn’t want to see SCW as something ‘supreme’ or something to ‘aspire to’ anymore. They wanted chaos, scandals, and controversy…
Again, the question still remained: did that mean that there was no place in SCW for a woman like Selena?
Her finger stopped its clicking against the ‘up’ key as her eyes spotted something unusual. Something she hadn’t seen. Before her, on the laptop screen, was a massive paragraph of run-on sentences and spelling errors. It was almost disgusting how many misspelled words there were before her, still, Selena gazed at it, her eyes still able to make out the words and sentences as she read aloud quietly.
“Is it so hard to see you can’t compete, Kandis?” she read. “I mean, our accolades alone put me at a level higher than you. You could try for another ten years and you’d STILL not be able to measure up. And that isn’t a slight on you or your accomplishments! That’s just how good I am.”
What was this? When had she written this part of her promo?
“I see it. More important, I know you see it. That’s why you’ve needed these games, Kandis. Cause you know you can’t beat me. You’ve known it all along. Hell, I’d wager that little ‘injury’ of yours last year? Like your little ‘sleeping to get 40’. Never really happened. You did it because, let’s face it, you didn’t WANT to face me!”
“What the hell…” Selena whispered as she eyed the screen. This wasn’t her style of promo. Sure, she could discredit a little, but this was flat-out burial!
“You’re not on my level, Kandis. Nobody is. That’s why Ace needed an army to get past me. That’s why Allocco got past you without needing to cheat. That’s why I beat him soundly where you couldn’t. That’s why I am here for a third time, while you’re just trickling in. You think they’re cheering you? Those people? No…no… they’re not cheering you. They’re just booing me.”
For a moment, Selena tilted her head, her eyes still scanning the words on the screen. “Face it, Kandis. You’re good for a couple minutes of porn-watching for a little ‘release’. That’s what YOU’RE good at. But me? Listen to them! ‘We Believe! No, we don’t! We Believe! No, we don’t!’. They’re so divided! And those that don’t believe hate me so much that they’ll ‘settle for anybody’. Allocco, Ace, Ravyn… You’re just the ‘stand-in’ for these people, Kandis. By next month, when the new season begins, they won’t care what happens to you. They’ll care what happens to me, but they’ll just be cheering the next person in my way – hoping I get beat and made to shut the fuck-“
“That doesn’t sound like you at all.”
Selena’s voice dropped as her head jerked up to see the woman standing in the doorway, the bedroom behind her. She wore black shorts like Selena, but a gray t-shirt that was also a little big for her. Her hair was a red lion’s mane. All over the place; the woman scratching it with her hand to try and get it to settle.
“I…I know…” Selena sighed as she eyed the screen. “I must have been half-asleep when I wrote this.”
Or I did… Selena ignored the stray thought in her head. She didn’t want to deal with the nightmares right now. She didn’t want to deal with the ‘Snow Queen’ she kept seeing in her mind ever since that ‘drug trip’ almost two months ago. She just… didn’t. Quickly highlighting the entire paragraph blurb, the platinum-blonde hit delete, watching it all disappear in a second, allowing her to breath a sigh of relief.
“You’ve…” she heard the redhead spoke as the woman quietly made her way around the table to sit beside Selena on the couch. “You’ve never insulted the fans before. Saying they ‘settle’?”
A sigh escaped Selena. “I don’t…” she shook her head. “I must have been half-out of it.” She admitted. “I keep falling in and out of sleep.”
“How much have you slept?” came the inevitable question, causing the older Frost to sigh knowingly.
“Not as much as I should.” She admitted. “I’m really behind on this. And I’m shooting the last promo today.”
“Me too.” Deanna shrugged. “Mind if I use the bus?”
“You don’t want to use the arena catwalks?” Selena asked, turning a tired expression to eye her wife, who merely shook her head at her.
“You’ve got Frozen Central.” Deanna reasoned. “I’ll make do.”
“I… I guess.” The platinum-blonde shrugged before returning her gaze to the computer and the pages upon pages of notes, passages, and lines she had written over the last few nights of work, looking for any more ‘musings’ from her nightmare.
“Do you really think that?” the question came from Deanna.
“Do I really think what?” Selena asked, keeping her eyes on the computer screen.
“That the fans are really just booing you rather than cheering for someone like Kandis?”
It was an honest question, and despite her tired/caffeinated state, Selena could still see the value of its existence. With a huff of an exhale, she sat back against the couch, once more rubbing her eyes with one hand. “It’s not so much as I entirely believe it.” She tried to explain. “But there is some validity to it.” She gave a sigh.
“Think about it. A month ago, they were booing Kandis out of the damn building. Nobody cared about her whining. Now? She’s number one contender and they’re cheering her. What’s the X factor? She’s facing me. Same thing with Allocco-“
“That isn’t…” Deanna tried.
“He fucking ran over his kid, Deanna. He’s a womanizing bastard. He’s booed sick ways to hell most of the time, like when he faced Owen. Faces me? Cheered. Ace Marshall and Ravyn Taylor. Attacking other tag-team teams from behind and doing these shit-shows? Booed while the great teams like Amelia and Luz, Bree and Datura? Cheered. They face us? Cheered.”
“Okay, but that’s-“
“It’s me, Deanna.” Selena sighed. “And to a lesser extent you, but that’s because of your association with me.” She sighed. “O. warned me this was happening. That SCW was changing and I… I didn’t want it to. I still don’t want it to. And until I can’t fight it anymore, ‘keep fighting’ is all I can do. Even if I’m hated for it.”
“But it makes the fans sound so…fickle.” Deanna shrugged, the redhead clearly not comfortable with the idea. Selena, however, only gave a much calmer shrug.
“Maybe they are.” She sighed with no emotion. “They have that luxury to be. Cause they know someone like me is still around trying to raise the bar when they want it to be raised.”
“Okay – THAT was not you, either.” Deanna pressed, unknowingly creating a spike of irritation within Selena. “That doesn’t sound like you, either, I mean.”
“You know what’s not like you, Deanna?” Selena asked, turning her head towards her wife. “Challenging Raphael Alden to holmgang and trapping us into attending that stupid festival.”
“No.” Deanna hissed. “Don’t turn this around on me. We’ve already talked about that to death! I’m sorry, okay?! I got fooled just like you did! I got played just like you did!”
“You’re not supposed to get ‘played’!” Selena countered, her voice breaking a little from the exhaustion. “You’re supposed to be the voice of reason here.”
“Why?!” Deanna asked, pushing herself to her feet. “Why do I have to be the voice of reason? Why do I have to be the mature adult all the time? Are you incapable of acting like one?!”
Selena’s jaw clenched as she watched her wife pace around the room.
“Why can’t I make reckless decisions?” she continued, her emerald eyes scanning around the large hotel suite. “Why can’t I take risks? Why can’t I be the one hurting while YOU look after me?! Aren’t you seven years older than me?! Why do I have to be the most ‘grown-up’ out of the two of us? Aren’t you the more experienced wrestler? Why do I have to be the one to make you see reason in SCW?! After everything you’ve been through – that WE’VE been through?!”
Selena could hear the cracking in Deanna’s voice, a mixture of stress and exhaustion, much like her own. Feeling her own exhaustion – clearly the energy drink not helping her at all – Selena rested her head in her hand.
“You’re killing yourself over some idealism, Selena.” Deanna pressed. “You’re making yourself miserable because of your own standard!”
“And what is the alternative, Deanna?” Selena asked, finally turning her head to glare at Deanna. “I just let everyone do whatever the hell they want? Let Kimberly have her chaos matches! Let Ace and Ravyn use an all their friends to keep their tag-title reign intact! Let Kandis sleep her way to every accolade or whatever! Let O. sell the company to a greedy bastard that will just ruin it! That what I should do?”
“Why do you have to worry about them?” Deanna asked. “That’s not how this all began. When you became world champion again, all you wanted was to ‘show a better standard’, right?”
Selena sat back, inhaling and exhaling deeply. How fucking beautiful were things back then? She had never believed that she could hold the world title longer than anyone else, or beat the entire Holly Adams Brand, or even headline Rise to Greatness a second time. She had just… wanted things to be better. Not because they had to be, but simply because they could be. It was about showing a standard – a better standard – to make SCW better. To make the wrestling better and make it the focus of what SCW was supposed to be about.
Not ambushes. Not politics. Not controversy. But about wrestling.
“We were supposed to inspire.” Deanna stated. “That’s what this was all about. But lately… you just seem to want to yell and them them they’re wrong. That ‘this isn’t integrity. That isn’t integrity.’. That isn’t a choice, Selena. That’s you trying to impose your standard.”
BECAUSE IT’S THE ONLY ONE THAT IS A STANDARD!
Biting back on the remark that blazed into her thoughts, Selena inhaled deeply again. “Would you rather we be part of a company that’s known for ‘porn stars being world champion’ and ‘deviants running through the halls’?”
She saw Deanna shrug a little out of the corner of her way. “If that’s what happens.” She offered as an answer. “Doesn’t mean we have to change what we do and how we wrestle. Who cares if that’s what SCW is known for-“
“I CARE!” The Snow Queen was suddenly on her feet, sapphire eyes blazing at the redhead. “I care because I have spent a decade of my life for that place! I care because I have scars littering my back for that place! I care because of every concussion and fractured rib and busted foot and every stitch in my head that I’ve given to that place! I care because of every friend I’ve lost to this place: Kelcey, Dawn, Kennedy – my sister! Now you want me to just let it fall apart like it’s nothing? Like I’ve wasted ten years of my life?! Like all of them wasted their lives?!” she shook her head angrily at Deanna. “I won’t do it, Deanna! Not now! Not ever!”
She felt her breath heaving a little, her wife standing, expressionless, before her. “I tried, okay?” Selena continued. “Heaven knows I tried.” She half-laughed, not using her usual ‘gods’ reference. “I tried to give them every opportunity to ‘be better’. To be something great! I tried to help them make this better! You think I wanted this?!” she gestured to the chair in the corner, where the SCW world title sat. “I wanted us to be defending the tag-team titles at Rise to Greatness! I wanted us to make The House of Frost tag-team of the year! I wanted to see you grow and become an amazing singles wrestler without me constantly having to overshadow you!” she saw Deanna flinch at that last remark. “Oh you think I didn’t hear those words?” she laughed at the redhead. “I heard every one. In every line they said about you… and every promo you said.”
The two stood in silence for several seconds, the older Frost trying desperately to calm herself down. “I tried. For us. For you. For everyone, Deanna. And look what happened.” She gestured with her hands outstretched a little. “They had the choice and they chose to make this place worse. Now? I have to fix it.”
She wasn’t sure what she was feeling right now. No, that wasn’t true. She was feeling a mixture of everything. She was angry at SCW for what it was doing to her family. She was upset at her family for not understanding what this was doing to SCW. She was frustrated at the fans being so back and forth when the only person that seemed to really care about them were people like her, Deanna, Bree and Light in the Darkness! She had spent nearly a year weeding out the people like the Holly Adams Brand, The Connection, Ace Marshall and most of Infamous – people that were hurting the integrity of this sport.
And look where it lead:
The Brand was back.
Ace Marshall was back.
Ravyn was a champion again.
And CHBK… held her entire future in his hands.
Was it… was it really all for nothing? Did none of it really matter? Had she made any difference at all with all her beliefs, her refusal to give in, her sacrifices… had it really done anything? Or had she merely kept the ship of SCW afloat for just a little longer?
“I have to go.” She whispered, walking past Deanna and towards the door, grabbing her cardkey and her wallet inside her purse.
“Where are you going?!” Deanna asked. “It’s not even 7 yet. Nothing’s open-“
“I JUST-“ Selena tried, forcing her mouth shut and her eyes closed to try and control herself. Flimsily, she gestured to the mini-fridge. “I just have to go pick up some more energy drinks.”
She saw Deanna turn her head, to see the empty cans that sat on the table around Selena’s laptop. It was the time Selena needed to reach for the door handle and pull the door open, but not enough time to escape Deanna’s word.
“Why?” came the chilling question that gripped Selena, the platinum-blonde unable stop herself from turning a little to gaze her beloved wife. “Why does it have to be you?” Deanna asked. “Why do you have to fix it?”
The answer came far more easily than Selena wanted to. Not because it wasn’t true, but because how strongly she believed it.
”Because I am the only one who can.” she whispered to Deanna before quietly completing her exit from their room, stopping for a moment to stand in the quiet, hotel hallway; her hands finding her braid to pull it tightly to the side of her head.
”Because I am the only one who can.”
_______________________________________________________________
![[Image: tetXUW1.gif]](https://i.imgur.com/tetXUW1.gif)
The camera opens up to the interior of the Rogers Center in Toronto, Ontario. From the opening shot, only words like ‘majestic’, ‘incredible’, ‘spectacular’, and ‘extraordinary’ come to mind as one takes in the decorations of the arena’s interior. From the lights, to the seats, to the colors, every little bit of this space speaks of the history-making, once-a-year (perhaps lifetime) night that awaits the SCW Universe: Rise to Greatness!
It is still a day or so until the festivities begin, but the elegance is still very apparent and ready. But perhaps that makes the emptiness of the arena more noticeable, the camera moving in towards the ring where the woman in jeans, a black shirt with snowflakes on it and a leather jacket stands. On her shoulder shines the prize for the main-event of the main card: the SCW world championship. Despite its lustre, however, the sapphire eyes of Selena Frost are not on it, but rather on the illuminated decorations that read “Rise to Greatness XX” throughout the arena-interior.
A year ago… comes the quiet words from Selena. Can’t believe it’s only been a year. Can’t believe it’s been a whole year, either. Seems like only yesterday – and yet a lifetime ago – that I was standing here with this title and all the hope in the world.
A ghost of a smile graces her features. See, I had this dream. In a world where this title kept being drowned in controversy and things like ‘earning it’ and ‘hard work’ and ‘passion’ took a backseat to how having your entire stable help you get it and keep it, or making deals behind closed doors, or screwing around with the boss’ daughter, I dreamed of an SCW where this title could be elevated above all of that. Where the words “World Champion of SCW” meant something – was seen as an accomplishment rather than something that could be bought. Alone with her thoughts, the Snow Queen slowly paces around the interior of the ring.
For a year, I fought to make that dream a reality, despite all the odds against me.
“She not good enough to be world champion again”.
“The Year of Selena Frost is over!”
“It was all one massive fluke!”
I heard every detraction, every critic, every doubter, but I also heard the SCW Universe. I heard them united in their desire to see this ‘new standard of integrity’ that I wanted to bring into this world.
Taking a moment, Selena takes a glancing sweep across the entire arena, taking in the empty seats before her. And together, we created something that may never be replicated ever again. A reign that may stand longer than any other in SCW’s history. And when it was over… I tried, guys. I really did.
Despite it being over, I WANTED to believe that we had done some good. I wanted to believe that we had accomplished something worthwhile. And, more than anything, despite what people have and will say about me, I wanted to believe, and was ready to believe, that the world title could stay at that level of integrity – at that standard – without me.
Stopping in the center of the ring, her head lowered, the platinum-blonde sighs before lifting up her head to stare into the camera. I waited a year. And I watched. And SCW… I was wrong.
Adjusting the world title on her shoulder, Selena gives a shake of her head. Because what happened in that year, huh guys? Day One of the new season, things started to fall apart! A week later, the world champion that promised you his ‘brand of integrity’ loses the title! And from there it has all been downhill!
A ‘pyjama sleepover party’ match to determine a number one contender?
A ‘Chaos Match’ that ‘ranks the titles’?
Continuous ‘title for title matches’ just to give the world title match some prestige?
That’s all just off the top of my head!
How was this what we created, guys? Whatever happened to the world title being the grandest prize in the game? Whatever happened to this championship meaning you were the best WRESTLER in the world?! But instead, you guys pick a guy dressed like a penguin to challenge for the world title? I just… for a moment, Selena forces her eyes closed, forcing herself to breath and calm herself down. Opening her eyes after a few breaths, she stares back at the camera.
I have always believed that you, the SCW Universe, hold the keys to the kingdom. I always have. And I have always done all I can to bring you the SCW you deserve to see – that is worth your time, devotion, money, all of that.
But I didn’t end up here at the main-event of Rise to Greatness because I wanted to… she shakes her head, her eyes once more on the empty seats.
I am here because I have to be and because of all of you.
Her jaw clenching, she returns her gaze to the camera before her. Because we’ve lost focus, True Believers! And you can hear it! You can’t miss it! Ever since last year’s Rise to Greatness, that’s where it all began! That sound that fills the arena!
“We Believe! No, we don’t! We Believe! No, we don’t! We Believe! No, we don’t!”
A divide across the SCW Universe. Because some of you… she shrugs with a huff. No longer care! No longer care about integrity or hard work. You don’t want something inspiring. No, you want something ‘funny’ or ‘cheap’ or ‘scandalous’, right? That’s what you want for this title. her free hand rests against the center plate of the world championship.
Almost makes me wonder if some of you even know what being the world champion actually means. Because to me, when I see this belt, I think about people like David Helms, who risked their lives to hold it. I think of people like my sister, Regan, who struggled for years to hold this. I think about the men like Shaun and Owen Cruze and Shilo Valiant and James Evans. Men who fought to define what this title meant in the wrestling world – how it stands head and shoulders above every other promotion and their world title. I think of women like Amy Chastaine, Syren, Regan, Kelcey, Katie Steward. Women who struggled to break the glass-ceiling so women like me can fight for this title rather than be relegated to a “Women’s Championship”!
Her eyes move from the title towards the camera. You know who I don’t think of when I see this title? I don’t think of cowards like Holly Adams. People that hide behind their factions like Ravyn Taylor.
And most of all, I sure as hell don’t think of you, Kandis!
I hope you realize the position that you put me in. I mean, management, O. and all of them- she gestures quickly to the empty seats with her free hand. They are responsible for me being here in the main-event tonight, but you? You, alone, are responsible for what is going to happen to you when that bell rings.
Because much like this title, I WANTED to believe that you and I could have a classic match – something that could not only be ‘Match of the Year’, but hell, ‘Match of the Decade’! Something that people would tell their kids about. “I was there at Rise to Greatness 20 when Selena Frost fought Kandis for the SCW world title”. When my path was set, Kandis, I still believed that we could have that.
More than that, I felt that, as you did, that fate was playing a hand here. To make up for the match we couldn’t have. I thought ‘she’s older. Wiser. Maybe more humbled from the injury’. That like me, the year had changed you. And I was hopeful – HOPEFUL, Kandis – that you valued the integrity of this title and the tournament that we went through.
The platinum-blonde releases a knowing exhale as she shakes her head once more. But, like many in the SCW Universe, including the…boss… you disappointed me. First night out, you came and started swinging low, didn’t you? You badmouthed my kids. You disrespected me. You disrespected my family. But it didn’t stop there, oh no! You wanted to keep pushing. You wanted to make it personal. You wanted to play mind games, didn’t you?
And I get it, Kandis. You stack even the last 3 years of your career with mine? I’ve got you pegged. From title wins to main-events to awards, the simple truth is you can’t compete on that level like I can. I run on integrity, you shrug and go “I win when I want to”. I make results, you make excuses. And deep down, you know as well as I do that you can brag and post your ‘Thirsty Thursdays’ and all that, but when the bell rings, one of us is ‘show’ and the other ‘can go’. A knowing smile forms on Selena’s face as one of her hands grips the top rope in comfort.
But you see, that’s… that’s all going to be contested in the ring this Sunday, isn’t it? Sunday night, you’re gonna have your chance but let me make it clear for you, Kandis. This is ‘put up or shut up’ time. For months, you’ve been demanding a shot at this title to make amends for history and whatever. Regardless of what I think of the ‘legitimacy’ of your claim, you’ve got your shot. And you strip all the drama and controversy away, Kandis? You know what happens when you lose? When I beat you? Your entire argument… your last seven months back here?
Selena snaps her fingers. Gone. Means nothing. All your claims, all your games, all your promises of ‘being synonymous with the world title’? Disproven and you know what you are then? You’re a loudmouth, whining little bitch that whored herself out for fame and got nowhere!
Taking a moment, Selena moves back to the center of the ring, her hand still firmly grasping the world title. Now, I’ve told you where your position is. Let me tell you mine now.
For nearly ten years, I have built myself up from the ground up. For nearly ten years, I went from some runaway kid from Nome, Alaska, to the girl with no confidence, to the Snow Queen that was defying expectations and shocking the world, to the Face of SCW that represented this company, to the single greatest SCW superstar of all time. Through all the hardships, the scars, the fractured bones, the concussions, I have stayed true to myself and to my beliefs and I have fought my way to that spot. And I know they hate it, but I have fought to earn that name: “The Face of SCW”!
Like I said, Kandis, I know some people hate it, but it is undeniable at this point. It is claim proven fact! And it has taken me nearly a decade to do that! Nearly a decade of beating the very best SCW has put before me, from star to rookie, from veteran to legend, from ‘flash in the pan’ to ‘Hall of Fame’, I have beaten them all so I can stand here and I say I am the world champion!
Slowly, Selena tilts her head back to the camera, gesturing towards it with her free hand. And then there’s you… who has lead this whole build up to the greatest main-event in this company’s history with a story. A tale about how you got here, not because you’re talented. Not because you’ve got skills or passion. No, you come here and start this slew of statements that you slept your way to the 40th spot of the Taking Hold of the Flame battle royale, thus better securing your spot against me.
For a moment, Selena looks away, her tongue clicking against her cheek. And the funny thing is that you think that I care at this point whether or not that statement is true or if, surprise surprise, Kandis is nothing more than a big, fat liar. You think I care about that or what the investigation from SCW will yield?
Newsflash, Kandis: I don’t! the words echo a little as Selena is silent to allow said words to truly sink in.
I don’t care if it’s true or if it’s just another moment of you running your mouth with fake stories and promises. I don’t care whether you’re lying and playing mind games or if there is a crooked board member in the SCW office – wouldn’t surprise me if it was O. with how he’s been running things lately!
But I just don’t care.
Because that’s not really what’s important, is it? What’s important, Kandis, is that you’ve made it all about that. You’ve made your entire journey here, not on your rehab from injury, not on your growth, not on your desire to be ‘the best wrestler in SCW’. No, you’ve made your path about how you ‘slept your way to the world title’.
Slept your way to the world title… The Snow Queen’s tone grows colder, her body more tense. Slept your way to the world title…
Looking around the ring, Selena suddenly marches to one side of it, leaning over the ropes to gesture to an empty audience seat. So, when I see that little girl in the audience with a replica title, is that what I’m supposed to tell her? That she can be world champion if she just bangs some corporate guy? What about that up-and-coming wrestler that is coming tonight? she points to another seat. What do you want me to tell her, Kandis? ‘Drop your pants and you’ll get everything you’ll ever want?!’. she hisses in disgust at that idea as she turns back into the ring.
What about the people I just mentioned, Kandis? The ones that fought for years to hold this title, some who never had a chance to headline Rise to Greatness despite Hall of Fame careers? People like my sister, Regan? What do I tell them? “Turns out you did it wrong? You should have banged a board member?” her tone grows even colder, her sapphire eyes narrowing as she stands in the middle of the ring.
What about MY kids, Kandis? What about my daughter, Elsianna, that wants to be a wrestler one day like her mothers? What do I tell her, Kandis? That it’s not about how hard you work, but how ‘hot’ you are and how ‘good and easy you give’ in the bedroom to anyone that can get you higher up the ladder? Is that what I should tell my eleven-year-old child, Kandis?!
Rage rolls off the Snow Queen, her words deadpan and cold as her hands are white from clenching. See, Kandis, whether it’s true or not, you have made your place here in this match all about it – you have made it what you represent. A shortcut of shortcuts. The cheapest, sleeziest, most disrespectful thing you could have done to this world title!
And what if you win it? What then, Kandis? You gonna wear it backwards around your ass? You going to show it off on your tweets like an accessory? We going to see it in another ‘leaked’ video of yours?! That what this title means to you?!
Gripping the world title, Selena vehemently shakes her head. That is not going to happen, Kandis. Because I’m the one that’s in your way. And there isn’t a person you can bang or suck that is going to save you from me. Because this isn’t going to be the ‘classic, 5-star match’ that I wanted. No, Kandis. This is going to be brutal. This is going to be humiliating. This is going to be the worst night of your life.
A growl forms deep in the Snow Queen’s throat. Because I’m not interested in just beating you now. No. That ship sailed the second you made the choice you made. No, Kandis. I’m not going to give a match that you, win or lose, can be ‘proud of’.
I am going to embarrass you. I am going to shame you. I am going to beat you to the ground, and then I am going to beat you some more until you, the SCW Universe, hell the entire world knows the massive difference between ‘sleeping your way to the top’ and ‘earning your way to the top’! So that the True Believers know it! So that my daughter knows it!!!
Lowering her arm, her voice calming, Selena breathes one calming breath before speaking normally again. And when I am done, Kandis, I am going to kick you out of my ring. I am going to stand here with my SCW world championship, and whether I am booed or cheered – whether they believe me or not – I will FIX this company at long last! I will FIX this company’s integrity! I will FIX this world championship’s legacy!
So enjoy a beatdown like you have never had before, Kandis. It’s the only thing in this entire federation that you have truly earned.
Believe it! Sapphire eyes narrow. And go fuck yourself! Before she holds the world title above her head, the last image that is seen before the shot fades to black.
DISCLAIMER: The following is a work of fiction and not to be confused as complete or accurate representation of any beliefs, religions, etc. Please refer to research/articles by experts for that.
The Witches of Alden
”Intervention”
Fairmount Royal York Hotel
Toronto, Ontario
July 21st, 2023
6:02am
Selena’s head snapped up, the Snow Queen giving the barest gasp as she was ripped back into the conscious world, her sapphire eyes scanning the large suite wildly as she recovered from her nightmare. Without really ‘taking everything in’, her gaze swept over the white and black designs of the carpet, the white walls, couch, the beige curtains and the dark that rested beyond the window that was beside her as she sat on said couch.
How long had she been asleep? Immediately, her attention was thrown back to the glowing computer screen that stood before her, the laptop still aglow and on holding her previous activity of tabs, videos and word document. Selena ignored all of that, choosing instead to zero in on the clock at the bottom-right corner of the screen.
Twelve minutes… she mentally calculated, though even that felt exhausting to the Snow Queen, forcing her to rub her eyes with one hand/palm as she yawned quietly. However, a second yawn quickly saw her checking the few empty cans that surrounded the laptop, the platinum-blonde eyeing the empty white and silver Monster Zero drinks, even tapping a few of them to see if there was any that were even half-full.
A fruitless endeavor, she gathered, as she usually just downed the drink as soon as she opened it so she could refocus and get back to task. With a sigh, the world champion pushed herself off the couch, feeling her several different parts of her body pop or crack under the movement after being idle for so long…
How long? She didn’t want to process that just yet as she moved the few steps through the ‘lounge’ area of the master suite of the Fairmount Royal York Hotel, her feet aching a little as she reached the mini-fridge she had brought into the room upon ‘special request’. Opening the door, she pulled out another Monster Zero drink, lowering her count within the fridge to, it looked like, five.
I may have to get more. She thought to herself as she gave the can three taps on the top with her finger before opening it. That or have a heart-attack or something. She mentally added cynically before tipping the can up to drink from it. She didn’t feel any rush from the energy drink – they were usually a ‘shot in the dark’ in their effectiveness at this point. Sometimes they worked, other times they just made her more tired. Still, it would keep her up for a bit more time… I hope. she thought as she returned to the couch with her drink, eyeing the door that lead to the bedroom (where she knew Deanna was sleeping), followed by the window nearby her.
Quietly, her eyes took in the latter, seeing the Toronto towers and skyline. In many ways, the Canadian city was a lot like her home in Manhattan. So busy. Construction, people, an urban giant, as it were – though New York was SO much bigger than this place. Still, she could admire it… at least as much as she could in her exhausted state – the thought causing her to leave her ‘gazing’ to focus back on her screen, changing it over to the word document she had been working on.
Her last promo.
Another sigh escaped her as she gazed at the jumble of words before her, the page filled with random points and ideas about so much: SCW, Rise to Greatness, the world title, her history with both… Kandis.
Again, another sigh escaped her at the thought of her upcoming opponent, the platinum-blonde waiting for the energy drink to kick in as, with one finger, she impatiently, repeatedly clicked the ‘K’ button with her finger, watching it produce the letter on the screen over and over again.
She had lost track of how many hours she had put into this laptop, from watching videos to working on her promo script… and she only had another eight or so hours before she had to film her final ‘Frozen Central’ of the SCW season.
The schedule annoyed her. Usually, she would have waited till the day of the event as a sort of ‘set-up’ for the pay-per-view, but because of Rise to Greatness having not only its Pre-Show and Hall of Fame on the Saturday, which involved Deanna’s first match (the one for the United States Title, which Selena could not afford to miss), not to mention the meet-and-greets that she had to do through the weekend as part of the Rise to Greatness festivities, she had been forced to move her ‘filming time’ to earlier in the week – which now was later today…
And all she had was pages upon pages of rants to throw at Kandis.
With a sigh, Selena sat back against the couch. She had tried so hard to keep ‘calm’ and ‘composed’ throughout her first promo, everything she had done from choosing to film from her Manhattan home to being dressed in a black suit – a sort of metaphorical armor of ‘elegance’ to try and keep her composure – and yet she still had let a little of her frustration and rage seep through. And, yes, she was prepared to do that in the ring and to deal with Kandis accordingly… but it was getting harder and harder to focus on the most important task at hand!
Promoting the ‘Unbelievable Main Event III’ and then winning the damn match!
Another sigh and Selena gently pulled up the front of her baggy, black, ‘Skillet’ band t-shirt (a good two sizes larger than it needed to be to fit her lithe frame), pulling the garment up to wrap around the top of her head, creating a sort of ‘curtain’ in front of her eyes. Seeing only black, the Snow Queen sat further back against the couch, quietly breathing as she starred into the absence of color. She could just barely make out the glowing light of her laptop beyond the shirt-wall as she rocked back and forth against the back cushion.
She needed rest, and she knew it.
She needed to finish this promo, and she knew it.
She needed to settle things with Deanna so neither of them would be distracted for their matches, and she knew it.
She needed to win her match… and she knew it.
Since they had checked into the hotel a few days ago, Selena had lost track at how many nights she had spent out here, and how many times she had raided a convenience store or two to ‘refill’ her mini-fridge with energy drinks. But how could she do anything else? Everything was so… out of control! Worse than last year when she had face Adam Allocco. Sure, she hadn’t liked the man – still didn’t like him or even respect him – but at the time, things were decent! The fans were all for ‘integrity’ in SCW, the match was really ‘skill vs. skill’ and, while she had lost, there was, undisputedly, so much less pressure on her shoulders! Sure, she had wanted to retain, but if she had to lose the world title, going out at RTG being beaten cleanly? That was the way to go.
Not the case this time around. This time around, Kandis had played every trick to get inside Selena’s head, almost – if not on the level – of Ravyn, Xander and Vixen Cain, of all people. The SCW world was abuzz, not so much whether or not Selena could beat Kandis – there was little doubt that she was capable of that considering how far the Snow Queen had come this year to get back the world title, but rather she was going to ‘crack’ or not.
A scoff escaped the Snow Queen. “Crack…” she whispered into her shirt before pulling it back down off her head to, once more stare at the screen. She didn’t bother to erase the line of ‘K’s she had previously typed in her rut of silence, instead choosing to push the ‘up’ button to head the document to its beginning. Crack… that’s what people were talking about. Whether or not Selena Frost would ‘crack’ under all the crap and controversy and just… just…
She stopped her ascent of the document. She wasn’t even sure what she would do if she supposedly did ‘crack’. The notion had come to her after Mr. Drach- O.! she reminded herself with disdain at the SCW ‘boss’ – had chosen CHBK as the special guest referee for her match with Kandis. Gods, she had been so angry! How could O. have chosen him?! It made even less sense than Ace Marshall being in the goddamn Hall of Fame! At least, to some degree, Ace had accomplished SOME respectful things in SCW, like being the only person to win the Taking Hold of the Flame Battle Royale twice, as well as other accolades – though she despised him as a person.
But CHBK?! There was NO sense in that! The man had been in Infamous’ pocket for how many years?! How many people had he screwed out of the world title? How many people had he lied to and cheated?! The man knew NOTHING of integrity and O. had chosen him?!
Of course Selena had been enraged! Here she was now, weeks later, and STILL unable to think about it without feeling herself getting worked up! She had marched down to the ring, gotten in both the faces of the old men and said…and said…
Well, she had said a lot, but when she had reached the point she had WANTED to discuss, what she would do if CHBK screwed her out of the ‘Unbelievable Main Event’, she had faltered. Because she…. She just didn’t know what she was going to. It was strange. Nothing about these last few months made sense to her. She kept feeling like she was living in some kind of madhouse with SCW or some warped episode of ‘The Twilight Zone’ where everything was backwards and kept shifting and shifting around! Maybe that was why she was having such difficulty doing what was, normally, easy for her in writing her promo. It wasn’t just about being stretched in so many different directions, putting out so many fires thanks to the controversies and whatever that SCW was swarming with… but because she didn’t know what she would do – or what her place would be – when this weekend was all over.
Was there even a place for her if she lost?
She wasn’t so sure anymore. After her loss last year, that had not even been a question. Of course there was! She could look after other divisions, giving the world title a break and letting others step up and take on the responsibility of keeping the standard where she had lifted it to in her record-breaking reign. She could team with Deanna and make The House of Frost tag-team champions, as well as helping her wife be a better singles wrestler in the ring. There had been so many options available to her after last year’s Rise to Greatness and, for the most part, she had been excited for all of them.
Now? Like a few weeks ago, she didn’t know what she was going to do if she lost. Imagining Adam Allocco as world champion back in June had been hard enough, but Kandis? A woman with no class, morals, or integrity? Running around with the title being wrapped around her ass?! After everything she had said, bragged about, the scandals-
Selena shook her head, again feeling her blood boiling at the thought, her hands reaching up to rub at her temples in irritation, until the emotion eventually settled back into the sadness over the unknown.
Was there a place for her in an SCW that rewarded superstars like that? Did Selena even want to be in a place where that was considered ‘acceptable’? No. She had always been so… so proud to be an SCW superstar. Yes, she hadn’t started with the most talent or ability – hell, a glorified power ranger had beaten her in her first match nearly ten years ago. She had been so green and inexperienced, she was surprised she had lasted the first month without being called out on her ‘lack of ability’. But, as the months and years passed and she kept working at it, training for it, and seeing it for the honor that it was – being an SCW superstar – she had learned to not only love SCW and the SCW Universe, but to see it as something… special. Something to aspire to. To inspire others.
Again, O.’s words rang in her head. The idea that SCW was changing now. That it was becoming something else. That people didn’t want to see SCW as something ‘supreme’ or something to ‘aspire to’ anymore. They wanted chaos, scandals, and controversy…
Again, the question still remained: did that mean that there was no place in SCW for a woman like Selena?
Her finger stopped its clicking against the ‘up’ key as her eyes spotted something unusual. Something she hadn’t seen. Before her, on the laptop screen, was a massive paragraph of run-on sentences and spelling errors. It was almost disgusting how many misspelled words there were before her, still, Selena gazed at it, her eyes still able to make out the words and sentences as she read aloud quietly.
“Is it so hard to see you can’t compete, Kandis?” she read. “I mean, our accolades alone put me at a level higher than you. You could try for another ten years and you’d STILL not be able to measure up. And that isn’t a slight on you or your accomplishments! That’s just how good I am.”
What was this? When had she written this part of her promo?
“I see it. More important, I know you see it. That’s why you’ve needed these games, Kandis. Cause you know you can’t beat me. You’ve known it all along. Hell, I’d wager that little ‘injury’ of yours last year? Like your little ‘sleeping to get 40’. Never really happened. You did it because, let’s face it, you didn’t WANT to face me!”
“What the hell…” Selena whispered as she eyed the screen. This wasn’t her style of promo. Sure, she could discredit a little, but this was flat-out burial!
“You’re not on my level, Kandis. Nobody is. That’s why Ace needed an army to get past me. That’s why Allocco got past you without needing to cheat. That’s why I beat him soundly where you couldn’t. That’s why I am here for a third time, while you’re just trickling in. You think they’re cheering you? Those people? No…no… they’re not cheering you. They’re just booing me.”
For a moment, Selena tilted her head, her eyes still scanning the words on the screen. “Face it, Kandis. You’re good for a couple minutes of porn-watching for a little ‘release’. That’s what YOU’RE good at. But me? Listen to them! ‘We Believe! No, we don’t! We Believe! No, we don’t!’. They’re so divided! And those that don’t believe hate me so much that they’ll ‘settle for anybody’. Allocco, Ace, Ravyn… You’re just the ‘stand-in’ for these people, Kandis. By next month, when the new season begins, they won’t care what happens to you. They’ll care what happens to me, but they’ll just be cheering the next person in my way – hoping I get beat and made to shut the fuck-“
“That doesn’t sound like you at all.”
Selena’s voice dropped as her head jerked up to see the woman standing in the doorway, the bedroom behind her. She wore black shorts like Selena, but a gray t-shirt that was also a little big for her. Her hair was a red lion’s mane. All over the place; the woman scratching it with her hand to try and get it to settle.
“I…I know…” Selena sighed as she eyed the screen. “I must have been half-asleep when I wrote this.”
Or I did… Selena ignored the stray thought in her head. She didn’t want to deal with the nightmares right now. She didn’t want to deal with the ‘Snow Queen’ she kept seeing in her mind ever since that ‘drug trip’ almost two months ago. She just… didn’t. Quickly highlighting the entire paragraph blurb, the platinum-blonde hit delete, watching it all disappear in a second, allowing her to breath a sigh of relief.
“You’ve…” she heard the redhead spoke as the woman quietly made her way around the table to sit beside Selena on the couch. “You’ve never insulted the fans before. Saying they ‘settle’?”
A sigh escaped Selena. “I don’t…” she shook her head. “I must have been half-out of it.” She admitted. “I keep falling in and out of sleep.”
“How much have you slept?” came the inevitable question, causing the older Frost to sigh knowingly.
“Not as much as I should.” She admitted. “I’m really behind on this. And I’m shooting the last promo today.”
“Me too.” Deanna shrugged. “Mind if I use the bus?”
“You don’t want to use the arena catwalks?” Selena asked, turning a tired expression to eye her wife, who merely shook her head at her.
“You’ve got Frozen Central.” Deanna reasoned. “I’ll make do.”
“I… I guess.” The platinum-blonde shrugged before returning her gaze to the computer and the pages upon pages of notes, passages, and lines she had written over the last few nights of work, looking for any more ‘musings’ from her nightmare.
“Do you really think that?” the question came from Deanna.
“Do I really think what?” Selena asked, keeping her eyes on the computer screen.
“That the fans are really just booing you rather than cheering for someone like Kandis?”
It was an honest question, and despite her tired/caffeinated state, Selena could still see the value of its existence. With a huff of an exhale, she sat back against the couch, once more rubbing her eyes with one hand. “It’s not so much as I entirely believe it.” She tried to explain. “But there is some validity to it.” She gave a sigh.
“Think about it. A month ago, they were booing Kandis out of the damn building. Nobody cared about her whining. Now? She’s number one contender and they’re cheering her. What’s the X factor? She’s facing me. Same thing with Allocco-“
“That isn’t…” Deanna tried.
“He fucking ran over his kid, Deanna. He’s a womanizing bastard. He’s booed sick ways to hell most of the time, like when he faced Owen. Faces me? Cheered. Ace Marshall and Ravyn Taylor. Attacking other tag-team teams from behind and doing these shit-shows? Booed while the great teams like Amelia and Luz, Bree and Datura? Cheered. They face us? Cheered.”
“Okay, but that’s-“
“It’s me, Deanna.” Selena sighed. “And to a lesser extent you, but that’s because of your association with me.” She sighed. “O. warned me this was happening. That SCW was changing and I… I didn’t want it to. I still don’t want it to. And until I can’t fight it anymore, ‘keep fighting’ is all I can do. Even if I’m hated for it.”
“But it makes the fans sound so…fickle.” Deanna shrugged, the redhead clearly not comfortable with the idea. Selena, however, only gave a much calmer shrug.
“Maybe they are.” She sighed with no emotion. “They have that luxury to be. Cause they know someone like me is still around trying to raise the bar when they want it to be raised.”
“Okay – THAT was not you, either.” Deanna pressed, unknowingly creating a spike of irritation within Selena. “That doesn’t sound like you, either, I mean.”
“You know what’s not like you, Deanna?” Selena asked, turning her head towards her wife. “Challenging Raphael Alden to holmgang and trapping us into attending that stupid festival.”
“No.” Deanna hissed. “Don’t turn this around on me. We’ve already talked about that to death! I’m sorry, okay?! I got fooled just like you did! I got played just like you did!”
“You’re not supposed to get ‘played’!” Selena countered, her voice breaking a little from the exhaustion. “You’re supposed to be the voice of reason here.”
“Why?!” Deanna asked, pushing herself to her feet. “Why do I have to be the voice of reason? Why do I have to be the mature adult all the time? Are you incapable of acting like one?!”
Selena’s jaw clenched as she watched her wife pace around the room.
“Why can’t I make reckless decisions?” she continued, her emerald eyes scanning around the large hotel suite. “Why can’t I take risks? Why can’t I be the one hurting while YOU look after me?! Aren’t you seven years older than me?! Why do I have to be the most ‘grown-up’ out of the two of us? Aren’t you the more experienced wrestler? Why do I have to be the one to make you see reason in SCW?! After everything you’ve been through – that WE’VE been through?!”
Selena could hear the cracking in Deanna’s voice, a mixture of stress and exhaustion, much like her own. Feeling her own exhaustion – clearly the energy drink not helping her at all – Selena rested her head in her hand.
“You’re killing yourself over some idealism, Selena.” Deanna pressed. “You’re making yourself miserable because of your own standard!”
“And what is the alternative, Deanna?” Selena asked, finally turning her head to glare at Deanna. “I just let everyone do whatever the hell they want? Let Kimberly have her chaos matches! Let Ace and Ravyn use an all their friends to keep their tag-title reign intact! Let Kandis sleep her way to every accolade or whatever! Let O. sell the company to a greedy bastard that will just ruin it! That what I should do?”
“Why do you have to worry about them?” Deanna asked. “That’s not how this all began. When you became world champion again, all you wanted was to ‘show a better standard’, right?”
Selena sat back, inhaling and exhaling deeply. How fucking beautiful were things back then? She had never believed that she could hold the world title longer than anyone else, or beat the entire Holly Adams Brand, or even headline Rise to Greatness a second time. She had just… wanted things to be better. Not because they had to be, but simply because they could be. It was about showing a standard – a better standard – to make SCW better. To make the wrestling better and make it the focus of what SCW was supposed to be about.
Not ambushes. Not politics. Not controversy. But about wrestling.
“We were supposed to inspire.” Deanna stated. “That’s what this was all about. But lately… you just seem to want to yell and them them they’re wrong. That ‘this isn’t integrity. That isn’t integrity.’. That isn’t a choice, Selena. That’s you trying to impose your standard.”
BECAUSE IT’S THE ONLY ONE THAT IS A STANDARD!
Biting back on the remark that blazed into her thoughts, Selena inhaled deeply again. “Would you rather we be part of a company that’s known for ‘porn stars being world champion’ and ‘deviants running through the halls’?”
She saw Deanna shrug a little out of the corner of her way. “If that’s what happens.” She offered as an answer. “Doesn’t mean we have to change what we do and how we wrestle. Who cares if that’s what SCW is known for-“
“I CARE!” The Snow Queen was suddenly on her feet, sapphire eyes blazing at the redhead. “I care because I have spent a decade of my life for that place! I care because I have scars littering my back for that place! I care because of every concussion and fractured rib and busted foot and every stitch in my head that I’ve given to that place! I care because of every friend I’ve lost to this place: Kelcey, Dawn, Kennedy – my sister! Now you want me to just let it fall apart like it’s nothing? Like I’ve wasted ten years of my life?! Like all of them wasted their lives?!” she shook her head angrily at Deanna. “I won’t do it, Deanna! Not now! Not ever!”
She felt her breath heaving a little, her wife standing, expressionless, before her. “I tried, okay?” Selena continued. “Heaven knows I tried.” She half-laughed, not using her usual ‘gods’ reference. “I tried to give them every opportunity to ‘be better’. To be something great! I tried to help them make this better! You think I wanted this?!” she gestured to the chair in the corner, where the SCW world title sat. “I wanted us to be defending the tag-team titles at Rise to Greatness! I wanted us to make The House of Frost tag-team of the year! I wanted to see you grow and become an amazing singles wrestler without me constantly having to overshadow you!” she saw Deanna flinch at that last remark. “Oh you think I didn’t hear those words?” she laughed at the redhead. “I heard every one. In every line they said about you… and every promo you said.”
The two stood in silence for several seconds, the older Frost trying desperately to calm herself down. “I tried. For us. For you. For everyone, Deanna. And look what happened.” She gestured with her hands outstretched a little. “They had the choice and they chose to make this place worse. Now? I have to fix it.”
She wasn’t sure what she was feeling right now. No, that wasn’t true. She was feeling a mixture of everything. She was angry at SCW for what it was doing to her family. She was upset at her family for not understanding what this was doing to SCW. She was frustrated at the fans being so back and forth when the only person that seemed to really care about them were people like her, Deanna, Bree and Light in the Darkness! She had spent nearly a year weeding out the people like the Holly Adams Brand, The Connection, Ace Marshall and most of Infamous – people that were hurting the integrity of this sport.
And look where it lead:
The Brand was back.
Ace Marshall was back.
Ravyn was a champion again.
And CHBK… held her entire future in his hands.
Was it… was it really all for nothing? Did none of it really matter? Had she made any difference at all with all her beliefs, her refusal to give in, her sacrifices… had it really done anything? Or had she merely kept the ship of SCW afloat for just a little longer?
“I have to go.” She whispered, walking past Deanna and towards the door, grabbing her cardkey and her wallet inside her purse.
“Where are you going?!” Deanna asked. “It’s not even 7 yet. Nothing’s open-“
“I JUST-“ Selena tried, forcing her mouth shut and her eyes closed to try and control herself. Flimsily, she gestured to the mini-fridge. “I just have to go pick up some more energy drinks.”
She saw Deanna turn her head, to see the empty cans that sat on the table around Selena’s laptop. It was the time Selena needed to reach for the door handle and pull the door open, but not enough time to escape Deanna’s word.
“Why?” came the chilling question that gripped Selena, the platinum-blonde unable stop herself from turning a little to gaze her beloved wife. “Why does it have to be you?” Deanna asked. “Why do you have to fix it?”
The answer came far more easily than Selena wanted to. Not because it wasn’t true, but because how strongly she believed it.
”Because I am the only one who can.” she whispered to Deanna before quietly completing her exit from their room, stopping for a moment to stand in the quiet, hotel hallway; her hands finding her braid to pull it tightly to the side of her head.
”Because I am the only one who can.”
_______________________________________________________________
The camera opens up to the interior of the Rogers Center in Toronto, Ontario. From the opening shot, only words like ‘majestic’, ‘incredible’, ‘spectacular’, and ‘extraordinary’ come to mind as one takes in the decorations of the arena’s interior. From the lights, to the seats, to the colors, every little bit of this space speaks of the history-making, once-a-year (perhaps lifetime) night that awaits the SCW Universe: Rise to Greatness!
It is still a day or so until the festivities begin, but the elegance is still very apparent and ready. But perhaps that makes the emptiness of the arena more noticeable, the camera moving in towards the ring where the woman in jeans, a black shirt with snowflakes on it and a leather jacket stands. On her shoulder shines the prize for the main-event of the main card: the SCW world championship. Despite its lustre, however, the sapphire eyes of Selena Frost are not on it, but rather on the illuminated decorations that read “Rise to Greatness XX” throughout the arena-interior.
A year ago… comes the quiet words from Selena. Can’t believe it’s only been a year. Can’t believe it’s been a whole year, either. Seems like only yesterday – and yet a lifetime ago – that I was standing here with this title and all the hope in the world.
A ghost of a smile graces her features. See, I had this dream. In a world where this title kept being drowned in controversy and things like ‘earning it’ and ‘hard work’ and ‘passion’ took a backseat to how having your entire stable help you get it and keep it, or making deals behind closed doors, or screwing around with the boss’ daughter, I dreamed of an SCW where this title could be elevated above all of that. Where the words “World Champion of SCW” meant something – was seen as an accomplishment rather than something that could be bought. Alone with her thoughts, the Snow Queen slowly paces around the interior of the ring.
For a year, I fought to make that dream a reality, despite all the odds against me.
“She not good enough to be world champion again”.
“The Year of Selena Frost is over!”
“It was all one massive fluke!”
I heard every detraction, every critic, every doubter, but I also heard the SCW Universe. I heard them united in their desire to see this ‘new standard of integrity’ that I wanted to bring into this world.
Taking a moment, Selena takes a glancing sweep across the entire arena, taking in the empty seats before her. And together, we created something that may never be replicated ever again. A reign that may stand longer than any other in SCW’s history. And when it was over… I tried, guys. I really did.
Despite it being over, I WANTED to believe that we had done some good. I wanted to believe that we had accomplished something worthwhile. And, more than anything, despite what people have and will say about me, I wanted to believe, and was ready to believe, that the world title could stay at that level of integrity – at that standard – without me.
Stopping in the center of the ring, her head lowered, the platinum-blonde sighs before lifting up her head to stare into the camera. I waited a year. And I watched. And SCW… I was wrong.
Adjusting the world title on her shoulder, Selena gives a shake of her head. Because what happened in that year, huh guys? Day One of the new season, things started to fall apart! A week later, the world champion that promised you his ‘brand of integrity’ loses the title! And from there it has all been downhill!
A ‘pyjama sleepover party’ match to determine a number one contender?
A ‘Chaos Match’ that ‘ranks the titles’?
Continuous ‘title for title matches’ just to give the world title match some prestige?
That’s all just off the top of my head!
How was this what we created, guys? Whatever happened to the world title being the grandest prize in the game? Whatever happened to this championship meaning you were the best WRESTLER in the world?! But instead, you guys pick a guy dressed like a penguin to challenge for the world title? I just… for a moment, Selena forces her eyes closed, forcing herself to breath and calm herself down. Opening her eyes after a few breaths, she stares back at the camera.
I have always believed that you, the SCW Universe, hold the keys to the kingdom. I always have. And I have always done all I can to bring you the SCW you deserve to see – that is worth your time, devotion, money, all of that.
But I didn’t end up here at the main-event of Rise to Greatness because I wanted to… she shakes her head, her eyes once more on the empty seats.
I am here because I have to be and because of all of you.
Her jaw clenching, she returns her gaze to the camera before her. Because we’ve lost focus, True Believers! And you can hear it! You can’t miss it! Ever since last year’s Rise to Greatness, that’s where it all began! That sound that fills the arena!
“We Believe! No, we don’t! We Believe! No, we don’t! We Believe! No, we don’t!”
A divide across the SCW Universe. Because some of you… she shrugs with a huff. No longer care! No longer care about integrity or hard work. You don’t want something inspiring. No, you want something ‘funny’ or ‘cheap’ or ‘scandalous’, right? That’s what you want for this title. her free hand rests against the center plate of the world championship.
Almost makes me wonder if some of you even know what being the world champion actually means. Because to me, when I see this belt, I think about people like David Helms, who risked their lives to hold it. I think of people like my sister, Regan, who struggled for years to hold this. I think about the men like Shaun and Owen Cruze and Shilo Valiant and James Evans. Men who fought to define what this title meant in the wrestling world – how it stands head and shoulders above every other promotion and their world title. I think of women like Amy Chastaine, Syren, Regan, Kelcey, Katie Steward. Women who struggled to break the glass-ceiling so women like me can fight for this title rather than be relegated to a “Women’s Championship”!
Her eyes move from the title towards the camera. You know who I don’t think of when I see this title? I don’t think of cowards like Holly Adams. People that hide behind their factions like Ravyn Taylor.
And most of all, I sure as hell don’t think of you, Kandis!
I hope you realize the position that you put me in. I mean, management, O. and all of them- she gestures quickly to the empty seats with her free hand. They are responsible for me being here in the main-event tonight, but you? You, alone, are responsible for what is going to happen to you when that bell rings.
Because much like this title, I WANTED to believe that you and I could have a classic match – something that could not only be ‘Match of the Year’, but hell, ‘Match of the Decade’! Something that people would tell their kids about. “I was there at Rise to Greatness 20 when Selena Frost fought Kandis for the SCW world title”. When my path was set, Kandis, I still believed that we could have that.
More than that, I felt that, as you did, that fate was playing a hand here. To make up for the match we couldn’t have. I thought ‘she’s older. Wiser. Maybe more humbled from the injury’. That like me, the year had changed you. And I was hopeful – HOPEFUL, Kandis – that you valued the integrity of this title and the tournament that we went through.
The platinum-blonde releases a knowing exhale as she shakes her head once more. But, like many in the SCW Universe, including the…boss… you disappointed me. First night out, you came and started swinging low, didn’t you? You badmouthed my kids. You disrespected me. You disrespected my family. But it didn’t stop there, oh no! You wanted to keep pushing. You wanted to make it personal. You wanted to play mind games, didn’t you?
And I get it, Kandis. You stack even the last 3 years of your career with mine? I’ve got you pegged. From title wins to main-events to awards, the simple truth is you can’t compete on that level like I can. I run on integrity, you shrug and go “I win when I want to”. I make results, you make excuses. And deep down, you know as well as I do that you can brag and post your ‘Thirsty Thursdays’ and all that, but when the bell rings, one of us is ‘show’ and the other ‘can go’. A knowing smile forms on Selena’s face as one of her hands grips the top rope in comfort.
But you see, that’s… that’s all going to be contested in the ring this Sunday, isn’t it? Sunday night, you’re gonna have your chance but let me make it clear for you, Kandis. This is ‘put up or shut up’ time. For months, you’ve been demanding a shot at this title to make amends for history and whatever. Regardless of what I think of the ‘legitimacy’ of your claim, you’ve got your shot. And you strip all the drama and controversy away, Kandis? You know what happens when you lose? When I beat you? Your entire argument… your last seven months back here?
Selena snaps her fingers. Gone. Means nothing. All your claims, all your games, all your promises of ‘being synonymous with the world title’? Disproven and you know what you are then? You’re a loudmouth, whining little bitch that whored herself out for fame and got nowhere!
Taking a moment, Selena moves back to the center of the ring, her hand still firmly grasping the world title. Now, I’ve told you where your position is. Let me tell you mine now.
For nearly ten years, I have built myself up from the ground up. For nearly ten years, I went from some runaway kid from Nome, Alaska, to the girl with no confidence, to the Snow Queen that was defying expectations and shocking the world, to the Face of SCW that represented this company, to the single greatest SCW superstar of all time. Through all the hardships, the scars, the fractured bones, the concussions, I have stayed true to myself and to my beliefs and I have fought my way to that spot. And I know they hate it, but I have fought to earn that name: “The Face of SCW”!
Like I said, Kandis, I know some people hate it, but it is undeniable at this point. It is claim proven fact! And it has taken me nearly a decade to do that! Nearly a decade of beating the very best SCW has put before me, from star to rookie, from veteran to legend, from ‘flash in the pan’ to ‘Hall of Fame’, I have beaten them all so I can stand here and I say I am the world champion!
Slowly, Selena tilts her head back to the camera, gesturing towards it with her free hand. And then there’s you… who has lead this whole build up to the greatest main-event in this company’s history with a story. A tale about how you got here, not because you’re talented. Not because you’ve got skills or passion. No, you come here and start this slew of statements that you slept your way to the 40th spot of the Taking Hold of the Flame battle royale, thus better securing your spot against me.
For a moment, Selena looks away, her tongue clicking against her cheek. And the funny thing is that you think that I care at this point whether or not that statement is true or if, surprise surprise, Kandis is nothing more than a big, fat liar. You think I care about that or what the investigation from SCW will yield?
Newsflash, Kandis: I don’t! the words echo a little as Selena is silent to allow said words to truly sink in.
I don’t care if it’s true or if it’s just another moment of you running your mouth with fake stories and promises. I don’t care whether you’re lying and playing mind games or if there is a crooked board member in the SCW office – wouldn’t surprise me if it was O. with how he’s been running things lately!
But I just don’t care.
Because that’s not really what’s important, is it? What’s important, Kandis, is that you’ve made it all about that. You’ve made your entire journey here, not on your rehab from injury, not on your growth, not on your desire to be ‘the best wrestler in SCW’. No, you’ve made your path about how you ‘slept your way to the world title’.
Slept your way to the world title… The Snow Queen’s tone grows colder, her body more tense. Slept your way to the world title…
Looking around the ring, Selena suddenly marches to one side of it, leaning over the ropes to gesture to an empty audience seat. So, when I see that little girl in the audience with a replica title, is that what I’m supposed to tell her? That she can be world champion if she just bangs some corporate guy? What about that up-and-coming wrestler that is coming tonight? she points to another seat. What do you want me to tell her, Kandis? ‘Drop your pants and you’ll get everything you’ll ever want?!’. she hisses in disgust at that idea as she turns back into the ring.
What about the people I just mentioned, Kandis? The ones that fought for years to hold this title, some who never had a chance to headline Rise to Greatness despite Hall of Fame careers? People like my sister, Regan? What do I tell them? “Turns out you did it wrong? You should have banged a board member?” her tone grows even colder, her sapphire eyes narrowing as she stands in the middle of the ring.
What about MY kids, Kandis? What about my daughter, Elsianna, that wants to be a wrestler one day like her mothers? What do I tell her, Kandis? That it’s not about how hard you work, but how ‘hot’ you are and how ‘good and easy you give’ in the bedroom to anyone that can get you higher up the ladder? Is that what I should tell my eleven-year-old child, Kandis?!
Rage rolls off the Snow Queen, her words deadpan and cold as her hands are white from clenching. See, Kandis, whether it’s true or not, you have made your place here in this match all about it – you have made it what you represent. A shortcut of shortcuts. The cheapest, sleeziest, most disrespectful thing you could have done to this world title!
And what if you win it? What then, Kandis? You gonna wear it backwards around your ass? You going to show it off on your tweets like an accessory? We going to see it in another ‘leaked’ video of yours?! That what this title means to you?!
Gripping the world title, Selena vehemently shakes her head. That is not going to happen, Kandis. Because I’m the one that’s in your way. And there isn’t a person you can bang or suck that is going to save you from me. Because this isn’t going to be the ‘classic, 5-star match’ that I wanted. No, Kandis. This is going to be brutal. This is going to be humiliating. This is going to be the worst night of your life.
A growl forms deep in the Snow Queen’s throat. Because I’m not interested in just beating you now. No. That ship sailed the second you made the choice you made. No, Kandis. I’m not going to give a match that you, win or lose, can be ‘proud of’.
I am going to embarrass you. I am going to shame you. I am going to beat you to the ground, and then I am going to beat you some more until you, the SCW Universe, hell the entire world knows the massive difference between ‘sleeping your way to the top’ and ‘earning your way to the top’! So that the True Believers know it! So that my daughter knows it!!!
Lowering her arm, her voice calming, Selena breathes one calming breath before speaking normally again. And when I am done, Kandis, I am going to kick you out of my ring. I am going to stand here with my SCW world championship, and whether I am booed or cheered – whether they believe me or not – I will FIX this company at long last! I will FIX this company’s integrity! I will FIX this world championship’s legacy!
So enjoy a beatdown like you have never had before, Kandis. It’s the only thing in this entire federation that you have truly earned.
Believe it! Sapphire eyes narrow. And go fuck yourself! Before she holds the world title above her head, the last image that is seen before the shot fades to black.
![[Image: hffOaUZ.png]](https://i.imgur.com/hffOaUZ.png)
SCW Supreme Champion
6x SCW World Champion
4x SCW World Tag-Team Champion
2x SCW United States Champion
3x SCW Adrenaline Champion
SCW Television Champion
Longest Reigning SCW World Champion (234 days)
Winner of Shot of Adrenaline Tournament (2016)
Winner of Best of the Best Tournament (2016)
Winner of Trios Tournament (2018)
Winner of U.S. Championship Tournament (2020)
Winner of World Championship Tournament (2023)
Winner of Tactical Warfare (2014, 2019)
Winner of Elimination Chamber (2015, 2024)
Winner of Roofed Cage Match (2019)
Winner of Last Person Standing Match (2019)
The Unbelievable Main Event (2021-2025)
Winner of Double Jeopardy Match (2022)
Winner of EOTY Invitational (2023)
Winner of EOTY Invitational (2023)
Winner of Ironman Match (2024)
Wrestler of the Year (2016, 2021, 2022, 2024)
Tag-Team of the Year (2020 - w/ Regan Street)
Match of the Year (2018, 2019, 2021, 2023, 2024)
Feud of the Year (2014, 2019)
Shocking Moment of the Year (2024)
![[Image: 34zetxl.png]](https://i.ibb.co/SnpvD5T/34zetxl.png)