Post by Centurion on Mar 5, 2022 22:09:44 GMT -5
A World Champion needs to be incredibly focused.
The entire company is gunning for you. Every ounce of weakness can be used against you, and every single word can be twisted to create a narrative about you. You are the most loved and the most hated wrestler on the roster, and if you're not completely focused on the task at hand, terrible things might happen to you.
Unfortunately for Centurion, he doesn't appear to have gotten the memo.
We open up inside the apartment of Centurion in Chicago, Illinois. There, we see Centurion and Nellie standing at the center island of the kitchen. There are various notes and papers sprawled throughout the countertop, with images of Montague Cervantes and Tony Savage in various matches among the notes. Nellie has a marker in her hand, and is continuing to make notes as she speaks.
"Montague is going to use distraction to his advantage." Nellie says as she writes something down in a notebook. "He seems to thrive in multiman matches specifically because of that. Don't allow Tony to square up on you for too long. That's exactly what Montague will be counting on…"
Nellie's voice trails off as she looks up from the notes. She spots Centurion who is not focusing on Nellie - rather, he is watching the television in the kitchen, albeit muted, which is tuned into CNN, covering the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Centurion anxiously taps his fingers on the counter as he watches the news, causing Nellie to reach across and counter and grab her father's hand.
"Dad…" Nellie speaks in a soft, sympathetic tone. "Talk to someone."
"What?" Centurion says as he seems to snap out of his daze. He quickly reaches for the remote control and turns off the TV before looking back at Nellie and the notes.
"No, I'm fine. I'm focused."
"Dad, you're not even in the same country mentally." Nellie says, a little more firmly. "Clearly all this news about Ukraine is bringing up a lot of stuff emotionally with you in regards to Nikita."
Centurion bites the inside of his cheek. Nellie is right - Centurion has been thinking a lot about his late ex-wife Nikita over the past week. Nikita was a proud Ukraine woman who returned to her native home after divorcing Centurion. She had been very vocal about Russian hostility towards her country even as she lived in the United States, and was on the front lines of protests following Russia's annexation of Crimea. Nikita warned that this day would someday come.
"I wonder what she would be doing right now." Centurion says, solemnly. "If I hadn't cheated, do you think she would be here, right now, trying to help me prepare for a match against Tony Savage and the steampunk dude? Or do you think she would be standing here, watching in horror?"
"Neither." Nellie says, much to the surprise of Centurion. "The moment those tanks crossed the border, Nikita would have grabbed a gun and taken the first flight to Kyiv."
Centurion lets out a slight chuckle. "Yeah, you're right." Centurion drifts off once again as he continues to remember Nikita. "I just wish I knew…"
"No." Nellie says, interrupting him. "You don't. Knowing the details of her death would only make incensed and want blood. And that's not something you're going to ever be able to accomplish. Instead, what you should do, is TALK! TO! SOMEONE!"
Centurion takes a deep breath. Again, Nellie is right. If Centurion ever found out how Nikita died, he would want revenge. Given that this happened in Ukraine, it would take the effort of local police, or European intelligence agencies, to figure it out.
…Not that it would be impossible.
"You're right." Centurion says in a defeated tone. "I will talk to someone. After this match. I know a therapist in Greece that has helped me through some of the hardest times in my life. Monday night, I'll fly out after the show and go to Corfu."
Nellie smiles as she places the cap back on the marker and sets it down on the counter. She walks around the island and gives Centurion a hug.
"I'm proud of you. Remember, your recovery is a journey. You're never going to be "cured", but you have support around you that will be there on the days you struggle." Nellie pats Centurion on the back before letting go of the hug and walking back to the notes. "Now, think you can focus here?"
"Yeah, I'm good." Centurion says rather unconvincingly as he puts his head back down to look at the notes. Nellie picks up a pen and bends forward, putting her elbows on the counter as she looks over more notes.
"Look, Montague isn't going to throw everything he has at you. He's smarter than that." Nellie says as she gets back to business. "He knows this match means nothing in the long run, and that the important one is the one at the pay per view. He'll go for a cheap win, if he can get it. But this is a big deal for Tony Savage."
"Eh…" Centurion says as he disputed Nellie's words. "He's the Chaos Champion. The title isn't on the line. A win would be nice for him, but I doubt it would do much for him. He has to wait until after the pay per view to stake his claim for the World Title, and as we've seen in the UGWC, nothing is guaranteed from week to week."
"Bragging rights are worth more than gold." Nellie says as she taps her pen against the counter. "Having a stake for the title is arbitrary. It can be taken away at any moment. But that post-victory tweet when you pin a champion? That's the good stuff. Put a couple hashtags on it, make a million dollars. Simple."
"I hate social media." Centurion grumbles.
"Yeah, I've heard you before, Abe Simpson." Nellie jokes, causing Centurion to raise an eyebrow.
"Abe Simpson?!" Centurion says in a surprised tone. "You know how dated that reference is?!"
"I know, shut up." Nellie snaps back. "You know how weird it is to walk backstage with you and see wrestlers younger than I am?"
Centurion looks at Nellie, shocked. He blinks a few times before yelling back at Nellie. "REALLY?! Try walking backstage and seeing wrestlers younger than your DAUGHTER!"
"Heh." Nellie let's out a slight laugh, before a couple seconds of silence. Nellie taps her pen against the counter again, before breaking the silence. "You're old."
The entire company is gunning for you. Every ounce of weakness can be used against you, and every single word can be twisted to create a narrative about you. You are the most loved and the most hated wrestler on the roster, and if you're not completely focused on the task at hand, terrible things might happen to you.
Unfortunately for Centurion, he doesn't appear to have gotten the memo.
We open up inside the apartment of Centurion in Chicago, Illinois. There, we see Centurion and Nellie standing at the center island of the kitchen. There are various notes and papers sprawled throughout the countertop, with images of Montague Cervantes and Tony Savage in various matches among the notes. Nellie has a marker in her hand, and is continuing to make notes as she speaks.
"Montague is going to use distraction to his advantage." Nellie says as she writes something down in a notebook. "He seems to thrive in multiman matches specifically because of that. Don't allow Tony to square up on you for too long. That's exactly what Montague will be counting on…"
Nellie's voice trails off as she looks up from the notes. She spots Centurion who is not focusing on Nellie - rather, he is watching the television in the kitchen, albeit muted, which is tuned into CNN, covering the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Centurion anxiously taps his fingers on the counter as he watches the news, causing Nellie to reach across and counter and grab her father's hand.
"Dad…" Nellie speaks in a soft, sympathetic tone. "Talk to someone."
"What?" Centurion says as he seems to snap out of his daze. He quickly reaches for the remote control and turns off the TV before looking back at Nellie and the notes.
"No, I'm fine. I'm focused."
"Dad, you're not even in the same country mentally." Nellie says, a little more firmly. "Clearly all this news about Ukraine is bringing up a lot of stuff emotionally with you in regards to Nikita."
Centurion bites the inside of his cheek. Nellie is right - Centurion has been thinking a lot about his late ex-wife Nikita over the past week. Nikita was a proud Ukraine woman who returned to her native home after divorcing Centurion. She had been very vocal about Russian hostility towards her country even as she lived in the United States, and was on the front lines of protests following Russia's annexation of Crimea. Nikita warned that this day would someday come.
"I wonder what she would be doing right now." Centurion says, solemnly. "If I hadn't cheated, do you think she would be here, right now, trying to help me prepare for a match against Tony Savage and the steampunk dude? Or do you think she would be standing here, watching in horror?"
"Neither." Nellie says, much to the surprise of Centurion. "The moment those tanks crossed the border, Nikita would have grabbed a gun and taken the first flight to Kyiv."
Centurion lets out a slight chuckle. "Yeah, you're right." Centurion drifts off once again as he continues to remember Nikita. "I just wish I knew…"
"No." Nellie says, interrupting him. "You don't. Knowing the details of her death would only make incensed and want blood. And that's not something you're going to ever be able to accomplish. Instead, what you should do, is TALK! TO! SOMEONE!"
Centurion takes a deep breath. Again, Nellie is right. If Centurion ever found out how Nikita died, he would want revenge. Given that this happened in Ukraine, it would take the effort of local police, or European intelligence agencies, to figure it out.
…Not that it would be impossible.
"You're right." Centurion says in a defeated tone. "I will talk to someone. After this match. I know a therapist in Greece that has helped me through some of the hardest times in my life. Monday night, I'll fly out after the show and go to Corfu."
Nellie smiles as she places the cap back on the marker and sets it down on the counter. She walks around the island and gives Centurion a hug.
"I'm proud of you. Remember, your recovery is a journey. You're never going to be "cured", but you have support around you that will be there on the days you struggle." Nellie pats Centurion on the back before letting go of the hug and walking back to the notes. "Now, think you can focus here?"
"Yeah, I'm good." Centurion says rather unconvincingly as he puts his head back down to look at the notes. Nellie picks up a pen and bends forward, putting her elbows on the counter as she looks over more notes.
"Look, Montague isn't going to throw everything he has at you. He's smarter than that." Nellie says as she gets back to business. "He knows this match means nothing in the long run, and that the important one is the one at the pay per view. He'll go for a cheap win, if he can get it. But this is a big deal for Tony Savage."
"Eh…" Centurion says as he disputed Nellie's words. "He's the Chaos Champion. The title isn't on the line. A win would be nice for him, but I doubt it would do much for him. He has to wait until after the pay per view to stake his claim for the World Title, and as we've seen in the UGWC, nothing is guaranteed from week to week."
"Bragging rights are worth more than gold." Nellie says as she taps her pen against the counter. "Having a stake for the title is arbitrary. It can be taken away at any moment. But that post-victory tweet when you pin a champion? That's the good stuff. Put a couple hashtags on it, make a million dollars. Simple."
"I hate social media." Centurion grumbles.
"Yeah, I've heard you before, Abe Simpson." Nellie jokes, causing Centurion to raise an eyebrow.
"Abe Simpson?!" Centurion says in a surprised tone. "You know how dated that reference is?!"
"I know, shut up." Nellie snaps back. "You know how weird it is to walk backstage with you and see wrestlers younger than I am?"
Centurion looks at Nellie, shocked. He blinks a few times before yelling back at Nellie. "REALLY?! Try walking backstage and seeing wrestlers younger than your DAUGHTER!"
"Heh." Nellie let's out a slight laugh, before a couple seconds of silence. Nellie taps her pen against the counter again, before breaking the silence. "You're old."
