Thinking about the Future: Part 4

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Off Camera

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We open backstage at the UWA Sectioned pay per view.  Angelica Jones is spotted, still in her wrestling gear which consists of tight black leather pants, black wrestling boots, and a matching black flame print top.  Her long lovely gorgeous red hair hangs unrestrained to below shoulder length.  The staff, officials, and other wrestlers stare with an almost awed appreciation at this warrior, whose face is covered in blood, continues her walk down the hall as she approaches her and her sister Kayla’s designated dressing room.  Those who watched the match between Angelica Jones and Victoria Salinas know what happened, but for those who did not watch it (shame on you) the crimson mask Angelica wears as she walks the hall illustrates exactly what happened…

…Angelica lost the First Blood Match.

Surprisingly, it doesn’t bother Angelica all that much.  The smile on her face, a smile that shines through the blood, is creepy, oddly creepy to those watching on, but they do not know the truth as to what is going on behind that smile, and behind those eyes.  She may have lost but she has a great deal to be happy about.  She needed to embrace The Dragon, her darker, more sinister self, in order to get through the First Blood Match.  So Angelica unleashed The Dragon one final time for one final match.  Heading into that match, Angelica was nervous as to whether she could return from one more encounter with The Dragon.  Could she come back from the darkness?  It was a question she could not answer and yet she knew she had to at least try and answer.

The match has ended, and while Angelica did lose, it is Angelica alone who walks these halls, not The Dragon.  She can safely say that The Dragon is now gone.  The darkness and the evil is gone.  For the first time in a long time she feels quite…

…happy.

Now with The Dragon out of her system she feels she can move on to more important matters at hand, and that is to win tag team championship gold with her sister Kayla.  It’s been almost a year since they held tag team gold of any sort and they are more determined than ever to change that.  The moment they heard UWA send out the call for tag teams to join their division, they knew their opportunity was at hand.

Granted, it would be a rather awkward opportunity to say the very least, considering one half of the current UWA World Tag Team Champions is none other than Angelica’s daughter, Kayla’s niece Marie Annabelle Jones.  But they are all professionals and if it means going through family, then they will do so to get the tag team gold.

Oh but we’re getting a little ahead of ourselves?  The Sisterhood knows this and they know full well that a confrontation with The Ginger Nation cannot happen unless they can win the tag team tournament set up by Helms and Bryant.  In the first round they’ll be facing off against Gavin Taylor and P. Clarence Whitman III.

The Burns Brothers, a duo of powerhouse bruisers, and a couple of pretty boys named The Heartbreakers will also be involved in the tournament.  The winning team will get the title shot against Ginger Nation.  And now that Angelica’s dealt with her demon known as The Dragon, she feels she and Kayla can finally focus on that tag team title win that they have wanted for so long.

Jones stops suddenly and turns to the left.  She walks forward and to a dressing room door.  She turns the knob and pushes the door open.  Upon walking inside she finds her sister Kayla, pacing the floor in a nervous panic.  Kayla eventually notices her sister’s presence and her eyes grow wide after seeing her blood stained face.

“Angel…”

“Sorry, but I guess I didn’t keep my promise.”

“What promise?”

Angelica smirks.

“I promised you I wouldn’t bleed.”

Kayla cannot help but laugh, so does Angelica.  The siblings approach one another in the center of the room and embrace in a tight hug.

“Oh you bitch!  You scared me!”

“Eh, it’s nothing.”

She wipes some of the blood from her forehead.

“I’ve sustained worse.”

“That’s not what I mean and you know it.”

“Don’t worry about me.  I’m fine.”

Angelica twirls around so Kayla can get a good look at her entire physical person, front and back.

“See?  I’m fine!”

“Physically you may appear to be fine…”

Kayla reaches out and touches Angelica’s head with her right index finger.

“But how are you doing up here?”

Angelica grins from ear to ear.

“I couldn’t be better.”

The younger Jones sibling tilts her head to one side.  Her facial features contort into one of utter confusion as she looks on.

“But Angelica…you lost…”

“Yeah, I did.”

Angelica shrugs her shoulders.

“Better luck next time, I guess.”

“Better luck next time?”

Kayla shakes her head.

“That’s not how my sister reacts to losing.”

“Oh I see…I guess I should find some poor unsuspecting sap and destroy them?”

“I’d rather you not but at least that sounds more like you.”

Angelica shakes her head.

“No, that was not me, Kay.  That was The Dragon.  And The Dragon is gone.”

She motions to the wide grin on her face.

“That’s why I haven’t stopped smiling since I lost to Victoria Salinas.”

Kayla shakes her head.

“Ok, you’re not making any sense.”

“Look, get me a towel and so I can wash off and then we’ll talk.”

Kayla nods.  Angelica goes over to a wooden bench on the far side of the room.  Kayla returns with a white towel which she hands to Angelica.  The elder Jones sibling begins wiping the blood from her face.  Kayla then sits down next to her older sister on the bench.  Kayla then looks directly into her sister’s eyes.

“Ok, now I never quite understood your whole ‘Dragon’ persona to begin with, but try to explain what’s going on with you now.  What do you mean that The Dragon is gone?”

“Honestly…”

Angelica sighs and shakes her head.

“…honestly I’m not sure I understand it completely myself.  Hell, I don’t even know here it came from.  All I know is that it represented not just the anger and rage that I would feel, it represented every evil, psychotic tendency that would cross my mind.  All of my psychosis, all of my evil, all wrapped into one monstrous package, a package I called The Dragon.”

Angelica’s voice is shaky.  Even still, now, despite the fact that she claims it is gone, she still fears this thing, this entity she calls The Dragon.  Kayla notices this and wraps an arm around her older sister’s shoulder.

“It still scares me, Kay.”

“It’s ok, Angel.  It’s over.”

Angelica shakes her head.

“No, it’s not ok.  The Dragon made me do terrible things, things I am utterly ashamed of, things I cannot take back.  My reputation is forever tainted because of The Dragon.  I was a respectable wrestler, once upon a time.  Back in 2003, during my first year as a pro, I quickly broke ground, fighting men and, eventually winning titles held traditionally by men.  But over time The Dragon slowly took control.  Over time as The Dragon got unleashed more and more, and it left its violent, bloody mark upon the whole of professional wrestling, people forgot about the difference I made for women in professional wrestling. Now they remember me as a monster…or a lunatic…or both…”

Kayla pats her older sibling on the back in order to comfort her.

“It’s ok, sis.  Who gives a damn what they think anyway?  I know who you really are, your children know who you really are, and more importantly YOU know who you really are.”

“I know…”

Angelica shoots up to her feet.  Kayla stands up as well.  She notices that her older sibling has that all too familiar fire in her eyes, only difference is this isn’t the fire of The Dragon, this is the fire and intensity of a very determined Angelica Jones.

“…but by God, I will change their minds!”

“Uh, sis?”

“I still have some years left in me, but not a lot, and I refuse to retire as a monster.  I’m going to retire as the Angelica Jones who made an impact for women’s wrestling in 2003, I will retire as Angelica Jones the legend.  I will make damn sure the world remembers me for who I really am!”

“You do realize that changing a reputation is going to be difficult, especially for someone as controversial as you?”

“I know…”

She embraces Kayla in a tight hug.

“…but I also know that I’m not alone.  We’ve tackled so much in the past, Kayla…we can tackle this…”

Kayla smirks.

“…and I’ll gladly tackle this with you.  Together we’ll beat this, just like we beat Standing Room Only last year for the SCW World Tag Team Championship, just like we’ll win this UWA Tag Tournament and get a shot at the UWA World Tag Team Championship.”

Angelica rolls her eyes.

“Smooth transition, sis.”

“Hey, someone has to bring it up.”

Kayla pats herself on the chest.

“This will be my UWA debut.  After weeks of sitting on the sidelines, finally I’m booked.  This may be The Sisterhood’s first night in UWA but they know you, and they know The Sisterhood, but they haven’t seen me yet.  I want to make sure I make a good impression on Gavin Taylor and Clarence Whitman…

She taps her leg.

“…namely the impression of my boot to their jaw.”

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Off Camera

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The Convent of Our Lady of the Annunciation towers high in the sky.  Despite the fact that her older sibling, Angelica, spent her formative teenage years at this very building, and despite the fact that Angelica still visits this very place frequently for spiritual awakening and enlightenment, the younger member of the Sisterhood, Kayla Jones has rarely visited this place.  But the few times she has visited, Kayla is still impressed each and every time she sees the magnificent structure that now stands before her.  White marble steps lead up to a pair of impressive large brown oak doors.  The sides of this building are beautiful red brick that towers high into the sky, topped off by a white cross at its peak.

Jones stands across the street from the Convent as she stares in awe at this building.  She is wearing a red sundress that falls to just below the knees and a pair of simple sandals.  Her long red hair falls to just below the shoulders and she has sunglasses over her eyes.

Kayla is studying the place intensely, scanning the area for someone in particular.  Seeing nothing she walks across the street and up to the steps.  The younger Jones walks up the steps and up to the front door.

“Miss?”

Kayla spins around and spots a nun standing there at the bottom of the steps.  The Sister is about Kayla’s age, truth be told.  Perhaps slightly younger.  She walks up the steps joining Kayla at the front door.

“May I help you?”

“Possibly.  I’m looking for someone.”

The nun smiles sadly.

“Ah, sorry, because all I know here are my fellow Sisters.”

Kayla smirks.

“It’s not nice to see, Sister.”

The nun looks on at Kayla with a puzzled expression.

“I’m not lying, ma’am.  All I know are my fellow Sisters.”

“Siri says otherwise.”

“Siri?”

Kayla produces ‘Siri’, her iPhone, and pushes a few buttons.  It isn’t long before a ringing is heard.  This ringing is coming from underneath the Sister’s habit.  She flushes with embarrassment as she quickly reaches in and produces a cell phone.

“Sorry, I just…”

“Where did you get that phone?”

Kayla says, immediately interrupting the Sister.

“And furthermore, aren’t you the least bit curious as to how I got that number?”

The nun frowns.

“Now that you mention it…yes…”

Kayla motions to the phone in the nun’s hand.

“That phone belongs to my sister.”

“Your sister?”

The nun’s eyes grow wide.

“Who are you?”

“I think I’ll ask the questions.  You did, after all, steal my sister’s phone.”

“I didn’t take it intentionally, my dear.  She left it at the coffee shop by accident.”

“Coffee shop?”

She nods her head.

“Yes, there is a coffee shop where we used to always meet for chats when myself and Sister Angelica were both in the convent.”

“She’s not a nun.”

“To you, maybe not.  But as far as I am concerned, you do not lose your calling.”

She winks.

“See?  I wasn’t lying.  I only know my fellow Sisters, including Sister Angelica.”

Kayla rolls her eyes.

“Whatever.”

“Now please, ma’am, if Sister Angelica is your sister…”

She giggles.

“…biological, that is, then who are you?”

Kayla sighs.  She distrusts most people and she even has an unusual feeling about this nun, but still, it’s just a nun.  She holds out a hand offering a shake.

“My name is Kayla.  Kayla Jones.”

The nun accepts the handshake.

“My name is Sister Maria.”

Sister Maria squeezes her eyes shut and she grins from ear to ear.  Kayla finds this slightly odd.

“Uh, Sister Maria?  Are you ok?”

“Kayla…Kayla Jones…”

“Yes…?”

She opens her eyes.  She’s beaming with glee and joy.

“Your sister told me so much about you when we were in convent together.”

“She did?!”

Kayla is genuinely surprised by this.  Sister Maria nods her head.  She turns and starts walking down the steps.  Kayla follows her.

“She was greatly concerned about you and your well being after the two of you were split up.”

“She shared THAT story with you?”

“Oh yes, she told me everything.  Granted she did not know where you had gone, she didn’t even know if you were alive.”

Sister Maria smiles warmly.

“Your sister lifted a special prayer intention to Our Lady each and every morning just for you.”

It’s difficult for Kayla to take this all in.  The Angelica Jones that Sister Maria is describing right here and now is definitely not the Angelica Jones that Kayla knows.  This is definitely not the Angelica Jones that she grew up with up until she was twelve and this is not the Angelica Jones she competes with each and every night inside of the ring.  Kayla now wonders what happened to her in her time at the convent that made her that way.

“I’m…I’m not sure what to say…”

“She cares about you.”

“I know but…”

She shakes her head.

“…but that’s just not like her.”

Sister Maria winks.

“You’d be surprised.”

“But Sister, getting back to the point, care to tell me why you set my sister up the other week?”

“The other…?”

A look of realization comes across her face.

“…oh…so you figured it out?”

“It wasn’t hard.  Angelica was adamant that she had not called me down there to meet her.  Someone set us up and I figured someone had set us up, someone who did not want to see Angelica commit suicide.  A friend.  I wanted to confront that person face to face.  I wanted to find out who had helped her.”

Kayla stares at her sternly.

“And why…”

Tears form in Sister Maria’s eyes.

“Kayla, Miss Jones, I know that you and, quite truthfully the rest of the world, do not understand how good your sister truly is, but your sister is a saint.”

Kayla laughs out loud.

“Saint?  The infamous Firestar?”

Sister Maria does not bat an eye.

“Yes, she is a saint.  Your sister helped me in my time of need.  I was forced into convent and your sister helped me settle down, helped me calm down, and helped me to adjust to my new life.  Without your sister, I know I would’ve wallowed in depression and potentially killed myself.”

Sister Maria fights back a tear.

“Your sister saved me, Kayla.”

She reaches out and takes Kayla by her hands.

“Now your sister needs help and I wish to return the favor.”

“What does she need help with?”

“Sister Angelica has a demon that plagues her psyche.”

“The Dragon.”

Sister Maria nods her head, signifying that Kayla is correct.  Kayla then shakes her head.

“The Dragon is gone, Sister Maria.  Angelica said so herself and, quite frankly, I believe her.  I saw her after the first blood match against Victoria Salinas.  That match exorcised her demons. She’s never been happier.”

“The Dragon may be defeated but it is not gone.  Do you think something Sister Angelica has grown so accustomed to will go away that easily without so much as a fight?  Your sister can only cure herself by confronting the one thing that created The Dragon to begin with.”

She places a hand on Kayla’s shoulder.

“And when she does, she will need you, Kayla.  She will need you to be there for her.  And that may require strength on your point.”

Kayla tilts her head to one side and studies this woman, this nun, very carefully.

“What do you mean?”

“Let’s talk more.”

The nun smiles warmly.

“Follow me, I know a simply wonderful coffee shop.”

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On Camera

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“Angels” by Within Temptations begins to play.  Angelica Jones steps in from stage right and Kayla Jones steps in from stage left.  Angelica is wearing an elegant shift dress with sheer peasant sleeves and latticework panels. Black stockings run all the way up the dress and they blend in almost perfectly with the black dress itself and the black high heeled pumps that comfortably encase her feet.  Kayla Jones is wearing a matching lavender long sleeve jacket styles in a stretch lace with a scattering of sequins.  Her feet are encased in strappy silver sandals.  Kayla is the first to break the silence.

“Well it’s about time!”

Angelica looks over at her younger sibling with a curious look on her face.

“What do you mean?”

“It’s about time I get booked for a match here in UWA!  I’ve been here one month watching YOU pick fights with Selena Frost, have first blood matches with Victoria Salinas, and everything else while I’m sitting on the sidelines.  And you know that I don’t like sitting on the sidelines.”

Kayla shakes her head.

“Oh no, I have to be in the thick of things, I have to be involved in the action, and you don’t get much hotter than the action here in UWA.  Now you can argue all day long who has the best tag team division in all of pro-wrestling, but what cannot be argued is that UWA quite possibly has the most talked about and hottest tag team division right now due to the build, the hype, and the excitement that’s been brought into the division thanks to David Helms and Drew Bryant.”

Kayla motions to herself and her older sibling Angelica.

“And me and Angelica, we’re damn sure not going to be left out of the excitement.  The Sisterhood wants to be in on this bad boy and we’re ready to make our mark on UWA’s tag team division.”

Angelica nods her head in agreement.

“You got that right, sis, because that’s what The Sisterhood is all about; making our mark.  We’ve made our mark on every tag team division we’ve been a part of.  The Sisterhood has been together, united, in four different companies, and in each company we have held their world tag team championship.  Now in a previous life I would spend the next hour or so talking myself up and talking this team up about how great we are and how our opponents stand no chance.”

She shakes her head.

“But that was the old me.  The brand new me isn’t about to bury anyone and I’m damn sure not going to let past success go to my head.  I only bring up those past successes because we, Kayla and I, are humbled to have had our names etched into the history books of such great companies as Global Division of Wrestling, Global Championship Wrestling, Motor City Wrestling, and Supreme Championship Wrestling, and now we are proud to have this opportunity to put our names into the history of this young company, a company which is quickly rising up into a powerhouse in the world of pro-wrestling.  UWA is where it’s at and The Sisterhood want to be at the forefront of history.”

Kayla nods her head.

“That’s right, but you can’t get there on reputation alone and that’s what I like about David Helms and Drew Bryant.  They aren’t going to let the pretty boy Heartbreakers ride into a tag title shot on their looks, they’re not going to let a pair of Neanderthal Burns Brothers ride into a tag title shot just because they blindsided somebody…”

She shakes her head.

“…and no, they’re not going to Angelica and I ride into a tag title shot based on our reputation alone.”

She points a finger at the camera.

“That goes for you too, Gavin.  You and Clarence aren’t going to ride to a tag title shot based upon your name alone.”

Angelica chuckles.

“Oh Gavin, you remind me so much of myself back in the day.  I remember you and I had a match back at Olympus.  Who won that match?”

She smirks.

“That’s right, it was me…oh, I’m sorry, I guess you could blame that loss on your ‘seasonal allergies’, am I right?”

She shakes her head.

“Whatever excuse you wish to come up with, the fact is that you have not been performing up to standard.  You are a decorated athlete, you are a legend, you were great…notice the past tense form of the verb…and you have the potential to be great again…”

She frowns.

“…but that’s where it ends.  Potential.  I had to learn the hard way that resting on your laurels all the while putting other people down and burying them is not going to get you anywhere and, hell, what happens when you bury them and then you turn around and get your ass beat?  Case in point, you buried Connor Greene and Austin Blaze at Sectioned.  But guess what happened?”

She points a finger at the camera.

“YOU got pinned by Connor…you got pinned by the very guy you buried.  What does that say about you?  Blame it on your seasonal allergies all you want, Gavin, or you could just man up and admit you and Clarence were not the better team that night.  One would hope you’d be wise enough to realize the error of your ways but you are clearly not.  Immediately you jumped to social media blaming seasonal allergies and informing any and all opponents…”

She looks at Kayla.

“…that’d be us, right?”

Kayla nods her head.

“Yeah, that’s right.”

“Ok then, any and all opponents, us not to worry, that you could still carry the match.  Your arrogance, Gavin, is overbearing, obnoxious, and completely and utterly abhorrent!”

She looks over at Kayla again.

“Did I seriously used to talk like him?”

“You weren’t quite as annoying but, yes, you did.”

Angelica sighs.

“Anyway, the greatest of warriors and the true heroes learn from their mistakes.  I learned my lesson, I learned from my mistakes, but you clearly did not.  And that will prove to be your ultimate downfall.”

Kayla grins knowingly.

“P. Clarence Whitman III…”

Kayla looks over at Angelica.

“…so there’s two more of them running around?”

“Apparently.”

Kayla turns back to face the camera.

“Right, well you got saddled with Gavin, and I just hope his ego doesn’t rub off on you too, because if it does you’ll end up suffering the same fate as he does.  And it’s sad because, let’s face facts Whitman, you’ve been nothing but either a card filler or a lackey the past few years from the latter days of the Independent Wrestling Cartel until now.  You are what boxing, MMA, and even some parts wrestling call a journeyman.  You are reliable but not all that outstanding.  You are a former ULW X-Class Champion?  Good for you.  You certainly have the fundamentals, you certainly have the potential to be great, just like how Gavin has the potential to be great.”

She frowns.

“But just like my sister warned, if you let your ego get to you, if you begin to believe in your own hype, then you are doomed to fail.  You’ve been around a long time, just like Gavin, and despite the fact that you may not be as decorated as him, you are still quite an athlete, but if you let that go to your head, if you think for one moment you are better than certain people just because you have been around longer or won more matches whatever, then you’re going to find yourself losing again and again and again.”

She shrugs her shoulders.

“But then again, that’s nothing new to a journeyman, is it?  Be better than a journeyman, Clarence, and definitely don’t be an arrogant one.  Don’t believe in your own hype and don’t buy into Gavin’s hype.  As good as you may be, there’s always someone out there better than you.  Angelica and I used to think no one could beat us, and we started to buy into that hype.  Buying into our own hype caused us to lose the SCW World Tag Team Championship.”

Angelica shakes her head.

“We’re not going to make that mistake ever again!  We want to be UWA World Tag Team Champions, we want that title shot badly, but we’re taking things one match at a time.  We’re damn sure not going to look past you.  The tag team titles can wait because our first test is Gavin Taylor and Clarence Whitman.  And we’re ready to pass that test.”

Kayla smirks.

“Oh and Gavin?  You’re about to have something a hell of a lot worse than seasonal allergies to deal with.  Get yourself a dentist, because we’re going to kick your teeth right down your throat!”