Post by EmbodimentOfFear on Jul 10, 2022 22:09:09 GMT -5
July 8
I did what I set out to accomplish at Battleground.
Surely there will be the unenlightened who fail to understand what transpired. There will be those that will point at the “loss” in the record books and scoff that the Hastings and Deimos alliance was a disappointment. Yet my vow was to give to Donovan Hastings what he needed to resume his path to destiny, to reignite the fire that exists within him. In that I claim accomplishment and vindication.
At Battleground, Hastings suffered defeat in a mid-card cooperative match, and went on to see one of his most bitter rivals come within mere seconds of his brightest moment. In the closing moments of the evening, he recognized that his own slide coincided with Dave Rydell making a definitive statement about his own rise. In that moment, the true Donovan Hastings returned.
That is why Hastings took action on Synergy, why he ensured that Rydell did not reclaim the Conquest Title, and why their rivalry will finally be renewed and consummated at WrestleStock, because the jealous nature of Donovan Hastings, a dark sin that has spurned his success time and time again, has taken hold once again.
He is welcome.
Now my attention turns to another to whom I am indebted, another temporary ally whose role in the justice of Outlast must be repaid.
Now I attend to the needs of Zane Scott.
For what has felt like an eternity, Zane has believed himself to be the victim of some dark and ellusive conspiracy. There has repeatedly been little of substance to back up his claims, and yet here we are at one of the biggest events of the year, the festival that is in essence UGWC at its most visible, and Zane Scott is nowhere to be found. On the heels of direct and obvious friction with the reigning Cross-Hemisphere Champion, and the Professional is conspicuous by his absence.
Perhaps there is something to his plight after all.
It falls to me to stand for him. Everything now converges. My own past conflicts with Pierrot, my love for the legacy of the Cross-Hemisphere Championship, and my obligation to the honor of Zane Scott.
I go to the desert to face the Ragdoll again.
July 12
There is no shortage of abhorrent debauchery to observe during the annual WrestleStock Festival. This year is no different. As I traverse the fairgrounds, I find myself struggling to endure most of what surrounds me.
The Piercing Media District continues to dedicate itself to the lowest common denominator. In the Johncast District it was a miracle that no one had macramed themself into a sofa. I am entirely certain that the less said about the Bronyland Ranch, the better.
Lost in all of this madness is what this festival is supposed to be about, a celebration of the industry, of the legacy and history and culture that has enriched us. I made the mistake of thinking that Hell on Heels was on the right track until I made the mistake of passing through the district late last night and encountered its burlesque phase.
I have come to realize that the circus sideshow that so much of this festival endeavors to be serves as the perfect setting for the walking circus sideshow that Jaclyn Pierrot endeavors to be.
Pierrot presents herself as an infallible gift to the industry and looks down upon her fellow competitors, picking at her perceptions of their faults, but the truth is that much of her career here has been little more than a tease.
The Ragdoll shocked the Coalition by winning the Massive Melee, but faded into an also-ran in the Keys to the Kingdom Match. Tragedia del’Arte was set to take the cooperative division by storm, but fell to the Elite at Horizons and the team is increasingly obsolete. Pierrot was impressive throughout the Global Challenge, yet failed to advance to the finals. She overplayed her hand in the Outlast Tournament, and her failure to secure allies of merit resulted in a defeat in the qualifying round. Ultimately, for all her bravado and many victories, she is left with little true tangible success to show for it. Like the JCs or Kenzi Greys that preceded her, she is little more than a loud voice that seems to be unable to close the deal.
Those losses, those shortcomings, I have seen them eat away at her. I have seen here wrestle with her own mortality. I know what it's like to lose. To feel so desperately that you're right, yet to fail nonetheless. She has suffered, and she at times struggles to endure.
Which is not to say that she is not without her success. To be the Cross-Hemisphere Champion is a great honor and a tremendous achievement, one in which I place more value than most. Pierrot has already proven herself a dominant champion, with victories over significant opponents, myself included. Yet I have pinned the Ragdoll to win a match as well, it is what earned me the original title shot to begin with.
No matter the happy face she may put on, no matter the confident facade that she presents, Jaclyn Pierrot knows that she is not infallible. More importantly, she knows that I know it as well. And I am coming for her.
For the Cross-Hemisphere Title.
For Zane.
I did what I set out to accomplish at Battleground.
Surely there will be the unenlightened who fail to understand what transpired. There will be those that will point at the “loss” in the record books and scoff that the Hastings and Deimos alliance was a disappointment. Yet my vow was to give to Donovan Hastings what he needed to resume his path to destiny, to reignite the fire that exists within him. In that I claim accomplishment and vindication.
At Battleground, Hastings suffered defeat in a mid-card cooperative match, and went on to see one of his most bitter rivals come within mere seconds of his brightest moment. In the closing moments of the evening, he recognized that his own slide coincided with Dave Rydell making a definitive statement about his own rise. In that moment, the true Donovan Hastings returned.
That is why Hastings took action on Synergy, why he ensured that Rydell did not reclaim the Conquest Title, and why their rivalry will finally be renewed and consummated at WrestleStock, because the jealous nature of Donovan Hastings, a dark sin that has spurned his success time and time again, has taken hold once again.
He is welcome.
Now my attention turns to another to whom I am indebted, another temporary ally whose role in the justice of Outlast must be repaid.
Now I attend to the needs of Zane Scott.
For what has felt like an eternity, Zane has believed himself to be the victim of some dark and ellusive conspiracy. There has repeatedly been little of substance to back up his claims, and yet here we are at one of the biggest events of the year, the festival that is in essence UGWC at its most visible, and Zane Scott is nowhere to be found. On the heels of direct and obvious friction with the reigning Cross-Hemisphere Champion, and the Professional is conspicuous by his absence.
Perhaps there is something to his plight after all.
It falls to me to stand for him. Everything now converges. My own past conflicts with Pierrot, my love for the legacy of the Cross-Hemisphere Championship, and my obligation to the honor of Zane Scott.
I go to the desert to face the Ragdoll again.
* * * * *
July 12
There is no shortage of abhorrent debauchery to observe during the annual WrestleStock Festival. This year is no different. As I traverse the fairgrounds, I find myself struggling to endure most of what surrounds me.
The Piercing Media District continues to dedicate itself to the lowest common denominator. In the Johncast District it was a miracle that no one had macramed themself into a sofa. I am entirely certain that the less said about the Bronyland Ranch, the better.
Lost in all of this madness is what this festival is supposed to be about, a celebration of the industry, of the legacy and history and culture that has enriched us. I made the mistake of thinking that Hell on Heels was on the right track until I made the mistake of passing through the district late last night and encountered its burlesque phase.
I have come to realize that the circus sideshow that so much of this festival endeavors to be serves as the perfect setting for the walking circus sideshow that Jaclyn Pierrot endeavors to be.
Pierrot presents herself as an infallible gift to the industry and looks down upon her fellow competitors, picking at her perceptions of their faults, but the truth is that much of her career here has been little more than a tease.
The Ragdoll shocked the Coalition by winning the Massive Melee, but faded into an also-ran in the Keys to the Kingdom Match. Tragedia del’Arte was set to take the cooperative division by storm, but fell to the Elite at Horizons and the team is increasingly obsolete. Pierrot was impressive throughout the Global Challenge, yet failed to advance to the finals. She overplayed her hand in the Outlast Tournament, and her failure to secure allies of merit resulted in a defeat in the qualifying round. Ultimately, for all her bravado and many victories, she is left with little true tangible success to show for it. Like the JCs or Kenzi Greys that preceded her, she is little more than a loud voice that seems to be unable to close the deal.
Those losses, those shortcomings, I have seen them eat away at her. I have seen here wrestle with her own mortality. I know what it's like to lose. To feel so desperately that you're right, yet to fail nonetheless. She has suffered, and she at times struggles to endure.
Which is not to say that she is not without her success. To be the Cross-Hemisphere Champion is a great honor and a tremendous achievement, one in which I place more value than most. Pierrot has already proven herself a dominant champion, with victories over significant opponents, myself included. Yet I have pinned the Ragdoll to win a match as well, it is what earned me the original title shot to begin with.
No matter the happy face she may put on, no matter the confident facade that she presents, Jaclyn Pierrot knows that she is not infallible. More importantly, she knows that I know it as well. And I am coming for her.
For the Cross-Hemisphere Title.
For Zane.
