Post by Josh Eagles on Feb 5, 2011 17:44:25 GMT -5
I could smell the fear in the air. The damn rat bastard maybe just on the other side of this door. Long I had chased him trying to track him down and shut him up like I promised. An old wooded house in Illinios, run down, beaten, leaky ceiling. A place made for squatters but I knew this was the place. I'd never forget that boys stench, the stench of fear, of inadequacy. I raise my leg and kick the old wooden door and it splinters and flies off of it's hinges and across the room like nothing. I step inside. The smell hits me like a punch to the stomach. Too many homeless men had stayed here in their time. I clench my fist and glance around the room my eyes peering, searching for my next victim. It had been so long since I had cracked a skull, trapped inside a whimpering heap of a man. Today would be the day I let loose and nobody deserved it more.
The corner of my eye, I catch something. Movement. He was trying to make a run for it but I was faster. It was a blurr and then I was holding a scrawny man with long blonde hair by the neck and had him slammed against the wall. His eyes were wide in shock, he knew now that he had no upper hand. He tried to squirm free but he was no fighter, he was a word smith, a master of the craft that he knew wouldn't save him this time.
"Kyle. It's been too long. I feel like you've been avoiding me."
"No Josh, I ... I haven't. I've just been, busy is all."
His voice was scared. He was panicked, he knew this was the end of the line and he tried to appeal to my human side.
"Do I look like Josh Eagles? Do I look weak and pathetic to you? I am Tala!"
The time was now. I wouldn't wait any longer. This man had not paid his dues in too long and now that everyone knew the man under the mask he had nothing to hold over me. I smashed his head into the wall and I blacked out.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
I woke, cold sweat dripping down my forehead. My head was throbbing as vivid images lingered in my head of smashing Kyle's head against a wall of being Tala again. I looked around the room expecting to see my ghostly enemy waiting with a snarky remark or information of what I needed to do this week. No doubt he'd be waiting to not let me live down my loss to Esix Cordero the other week. But he was nowhere to be seen, it was strange. But it didn't matter because I had bigger things to focus on. I glanced at my alarm clock glare 5:33am. It was early but it was never to early to start my day. Recently Tic Tic had seemed to move to the back burner and the war with the UWL seemed to be slowing for some reason, both sides becoming uneasy over what would happen next.
But Christian Kane was fresh in my brain. In a few short weeks I'd be back in the ring with him and looking to retake what was stolen from me and I still had a couple of good ideas that I was going to use make sure he really understood what it was that he was up against, what it really meant to be a champion. But first my attention would have to focus on my opponent of the week, a man I had defeated barely a month ago in Luke Haven. But this time would be different in many different ways for both Luke and myself.
"Your not a green little boy anymore are you Luke?"
I through my legs over the side of the bed as I spoke to myself. It was true that Luke was now much removed from being a green boy fresh into his first match. After losing to me during the tourney he had continued to make quite an impact defeating opponent after opponent and always putting on a good show, he was getting a lot of attention in the Kingdom of Pride. He was more confident, he was more seasoned and that made him much more dangerous.
But he wasn't the only one who had changed. When we last fought I was a man set on revenge, a man enraged and easy to make slip up. Him being a rookie new to the ring was the only thing that made it so he didn't take advantage of my frustrations and of my mistakes. But now the facts were much more real, I was focused, I was prepared, and I knew what I wanted. Luke Haven would be a good test of my skills, a good place to try some new tactics to make a statement.
"It's been a long time since I thought like that."
As I stretched and made my way towards the bathroom to shower and wake myself up I did find it odd that I was thinking about making a statement against Luke Haven. The KoP was still in turmoil and it clearly wasn't putting it's weight behind the man it should be and that was me. I knew it deep down that this company would have sank without me holding it up, without my name headlining almost every event, without someone who was capable of making their champion look decent inside the ring. At first I had been doing everything for the fans but now I thought a sad thought.
"Am I doing this for me?"
I didn't understand why exactly it was a sad thought. I was the most gifted athlete in all of the Kingdom. I was the most accomplished person on the roster, I was the hardest to face and the hardest to beat. Nobody since my time in the Kingdom had yet to beat me cleanly without help, interference, or pinning or submitting someone else in a match. Not one person in this company had taken their own pure ability and beaten me and I doubted anyone would. I knew it wasn't arrogance or confidence but fact. I was focused on a goal and I focused on every opponent. I left everything I had in the ring because it was all I had to fight for ... it was me that I fought for.
I had come to feel like the fans and the locker room had turned their back on me and I found myself not caring in the least. I didn't truly need anyone by my side because I was able to stand alone against everything the Kingdom and the UWL was throwing at me. Christian Kane was more of an irritation then a threat in anyway. He went on about breaking the glass ceiling when in reality he could barely ever even win a match. I plowed through opponent after opponent and always welcomed the biggest and best challenges.
"Haven I am ten times more dangerous then last we faced and in the match you barely made it out in one piece. Do you think your hot streak will be enough to carry you past me?"
I could visualize Haven right there in the mirror I was staring in and I knew the answer. He knew he wouldn't win this match. Most people knew when they stepped into the ring with me they were stepping in to lose. That was okay because everyone who stepped into the ring with me always came out better then they were before. I could look around the Kingdom and see that, Haven was the biggest example. After one match with me he began to shoot up the ranks and that was because I made people better. Somehow when people stepped into the ring with me they felt what it was I brought to the table and they tried to mimic it. The only exception to this was Christian Kane but I could train him night and day and he'd still be a loser in the ring.
The question slowly was becoming what would Luke Haven bring to the table and how did he factor into everything. How could I use him to make me better, how could I use him to perfect who I was? That was why I loved challenging matches, I liked adapting, I liked having to think outside of the box because every time you would discover something new about yourself and about your opponent. What surprises did Haven bring to the dance this time around, how should I beat him?
"Pick you apart, beat you down, make you tap ... there are so many ways I can beat you."
I didn't understand why I felt like this was all dawning on me. I felt like Tala was becoming one with me again ... was there a chance this had been what I was missing the entire time. The real reason I fought, to make myself better, to bring myself to higher levels every time I stepped into the ring. Was I always going to learn and adapt and become stronger? The more I thought about it the more it made sense to me, Robbie Venom, Shawn Stevens, Rich Morrison, Delikado, Kurt Noble, Jeremy Sterling, Flap Flanagan, John Anthony ... those were all names that used to have real weight, real meaning behind them. Now they are names used in secondary passing with very little relevance. They didn't know how to compete in the current game.
I though was captain relevant. No matter what happened I was always considered a threat for the title, I was always making an impact in one way or the next. I was a lot like a cockroach, but instead of just coming back I came back better and more willing and capable of adapting to a situation. This was maybe my real future, my real calling. Eventually I would evolve and adapt far enough to become an even higher cailber. Was this why I envisioned Tala again ... as a catalyst to change?
"I guess it doesn't matter Luke. However you slice it in a days time you are going to be just another step on my evolutionary chain, another chance to become better, faster, stronger. I'll make another example out of you because no matter how hard you come, or what you throw at me I will adapt and I will match you and I will surpass you. I won't and can't be beaten and I am sorry it has to be this way. But it will not be your day."
There was no rage, there was nothing bubbling or boiling inside of me. Everything about me was calm as a body of water on a day with no wind. I was ready to face everything. Tala be damned, weird dreams be damned, Josh Eagles was the one who would arise and Josh Eagles would be the one who claimed the throne of the Kingdom once more.
The corner of my eye, I catch something. Movement. He was trying to make a run for it but I was faster. It was a blurr and then I was holding a scrawny man with long blonde hair by the neck and had him slammed against the wall. His eyes were wide in shock, he knew now that he had no upper hand. He tried to squirm free but he was no fighter, he was a word smith, a master of the craft that he knew wouldn't save him this time.
"Kyle. It's been too long. I feel like you've been avoiding me."
"No Josh, I ... I haven't. I've just been, busy is all."
His voice was scared. He was panicked, he knew this was the end of the line and he tried to appeal to my human side.
"Do I look like Josh Eagles? Do I look weak and pathetic to you? I am Tala!"
The time was now. I wouldn't wait any longer. This man had not paid his dues in too long and now that everyone knew the man under the mask he had nothing to hold over me. I smashed his head into the wall and I blacked out.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
I woke, cold sweat dripping down my forehead. My head was throbbing as vivid images lingered in my head of smashing Kyle's head against a wall of being Tala again. I looked around the room expecting to see my ghostly enemy waiting with a snarky remark or information of what I needed to do this week. No doubt he'd be waiting to not let me live down my loss to Esix Cordero the other week. But he was nowhere to be seen, it was strange. But it didn't matter because I had bigger things to focus on. I glanced at my alarm clock glare 5:33am. It was early but it was never to early to start my day. Recently Tic Tic had seemed to move to the back burner and the war with the UWL seemed to be slowing for some reason, both sides becoming uneasy over what would happen next.
But Christian Kane was fresh in my brain. In a few short weeks I'd be back in the ring with him and looking to retake what was stolen from me and I still had a couple of good ideas that I was going to use make sure he really understood what it was that he was up against, what it really meant to be a champion. But first my attention would have to focus on my opponent of the week, a man I had defeated barely a month ago in Luke Haven. But this time would be different in many different ways for both Luke and myself.
"Your not a green little boy anymore are you Luke?"
I through my legs over the side of the bed as I spoke to myself. It was true that Luke was now much removed from being a green boy fresh into his first match. After losing to me during the tourney he had continued to make quite an impact defeating opponent after opponent and always putting on a good show, he was getting a lot of attention in the Kingdom of Pride. He was more confident, he was more seasoned and that made him much more dangerous.
But he wasn't the only one who had changed. When we last fought I was a man set on revenge, a man enraged and easy to make slip up. Him being a rookie new to the ring was the only thing that made it so he didn't take advantage of my frustrations and of my mistakes. But now the facts were much more real, I was focused, I was prepared, and I knew what I wanted. Luke Haven would be a good test of my skills, a good place to try some new tactics to make a statement.
"It's been a long time since I thought like that."
As I stretched and made my way towards the bathroom to shower and wake myself up I did find it odd that I was thinking about making a statement against Luke Haven. The KoP was still in turmoil and it clearly wasn't putting it's weight behind the man it should be and that was me. I knew it deep down that this company would have sank without me holding it up, without my name headlining almost every event, without someone who was capable of making their champion look decent inside the ring. At first I had been doing everything for the fans but now I thought a sad thought.
"Am I doing this for me?"
I didn't understand why exactly it was a sad thought. I was the most gifted athlete in all of the Kingdom. I was the most accomplished person on the roster, I was the hardest to face and the hardest to beat. Nobody since my time in the Kingdom had yet to beat me cleanly without help, interference, or pinning or submitting someone else in a match. Not one person in this company had taken their own pure ability and beaten me and I doubted anyone would. I knew it wasn't arrogance or confidence but fact. I was focused on a goal and I focused on every opponent. I left everything I had in the ring because it was all I had to fight for ... it was me that I fought for.
I had come to feel like the fans and the locker room had turned their back on me and I found myself not caring in the least. I didn't truly need anyone by my side because I was able to stand alone against everything the Kingdom and the UWL was throwing at me. Christian Kane was more of an irritation then a threat in anyway. He went on about breaking the glass ceiling when in reality he could barely ever even win a match. I plowed through opponent after opponent and always welcomed the biggest and best challenges.
"Haven I am ten times more dangerous then last we faced and in the match you barely made it out in one piece. Do you think your hot streak will be enough to carry you past me?"
I could visualize Haven right there in the mirror I was staring in and I knew the answer. He knew he wouldn't win this match. Most people knew when they stepped into the ring with me they were stepping in to lose. That was okay because everyone who stepped into the ring with me always came out better then they were before. I could look around the Kingdom and see that, Haven was the biggest example. After one match with me he began to shoot up the ranks and that was because I made people better. Somehow when people stepped into the ring with me they felt what it was I brought to the table and they tried to mimic it. The only exception to this was Christian Kane but I could train him night and day and he'd still be a loser in the ring.
The question slowly was becoming what would Luke Haven bring to the table and how did he factor into everything. How could I use him to make me better, how could I use him to perfect who I was? That was why I loved challenging matches, I liked adapting, I liked having to think outside of the box because every time you would discover something new about yourself and about your opponent. What surprises did Haven bring to the dance this time around, how should I beat him?
"Pick you apart, beat you down, make you tap ... there are so many ways I can beat you."
I didn't understand why I felt like this was all dawning on me. I felt like Tala was becoming one with me again ... was there a chance this had been what I was missing the entire time. The real reason I fought, to make myself better, to bring myself to higher levels every time I stepped into the ring. Was I always going to learn and adapt and become stronger? The more I thought about it the more it made sense to me, Robbie Venom, Shawn Stevens, Rich Morrison, Delikado, Kurt Noble, Jeremy Sterling, Flap Flanagan, John Anthony ... those were all names that used to have real weight, real meaning behind them. Now they are names used in secondary passing with very little relevance. They didn't know how to compete in the current game.
I though was captain relevant. No matter what happened I was always considered a threat for the title, I was always making an impact in one way or the next. I was a lot like a cockroach, but instead of just coming back I came back better and more willing and capable of adapting to a situation. This was maybe my real future, my real calling. Eventually I would evolve and adapt far enough to become an even higher cailber. Was this why I envisioned Tala again ... as a catalyst to change?
"I guess it doesn't matter Luke. However you slice it in a days time you are going to be just another step on my evolutionary chain, another chance to become better, faster, stronger. I'll make another example out of you because no matter how hard you come, or what you throw at me I will adapt and I will match you and I will surpass you. I won't and can't be beaten and I am sorry it has to be this way. But it will not be your day."
There was no rage, there was nothing bubbling or boiling inside of me. Everything about me was calm as a body of water on a day with no wind. I was ready to face everything. Tala be damned, weird dreams be damned, Josh Eagles was the one who would arise and Josh Eagles would be the one who claimed the throne of the Kingdom once more.
