Post by Valora on Feb 1, 2024 17:57:54 GMT -6
Blair Buchannan used with consent and permission from the handler.
Flashback 1
Unknown Private Rehab center, After the Ignite where Johnny Styles injured Blair Buchannan:
Valora had been looking around since the moment she and Blair had walked into the rehab center. Almost immediately her spidey senses were pinging. She couldn’t quite put her finger on it, but something was wrong. Her thoughts were interrupted by a poke in the ribs from Blair. “Well? What do you think?”
Valora took a look around and wrinkled her nose. “Everyone’s so.. Happy. Like creepy happy.” And it was. Everyone here looked like they were freshly lobotomized, or bimbioized… or more likely, heavily sedated. That was it. At least two people in the waiting area were heavily drugged. She looks back at Blair. “I swear to god, Hermana, if your nurse’s name is Ratched, I’m carrying you out of here.”
Just then, a woman came up and smiled. “You’ll be happy to know we don’t have anyone by that name here, Ms. Salinas.” Valora turns and raises an eyebrow. The woman gives Valora a creepy smile. “Blair told us about your impending arrival. We do have a policy that we need to know who will be here, I’m sure you understand.” Valora nods. “Well.. yeah been to my share of physical rehab centers so..” The woman nods. “Indeed.. You seem in need of our services, now.. If I might be so bold.. Those are some deep bruises..” She leans in and lowers her voice to just above a whisper. “I’m sure at your age you’re noticing it takes longer to recover. Perhaps we can help? You’re going to be here anyways.” Blair chimes in. “Great idea. Val.. you’re getting a spa day. On me!”
Valora opens her mouth to reply and the woman smiles. “Perfect! Right this way, Ms. Salinas..” Valora looks around, trying to argue but allows herself to be led away by the nurses to one room while Blair heads off to another.
In the room, the woman looks at Valora. “Top off. Bottom… at your discretion.” Valora turns to her. “Usually I have people buy me dinner before I get naked for them.” The woman replies without missing a beat. “A woman with standards.” She says looking over Valora and taking a moment, obviously appreciating the view. She then walks over and disguises her staring as more professional by looking at the bruises and injuries.
The woman nods. “Lay down on your stomach please. Let’s get started.” Valora does as she’s told, settling into the massage table. She felt the pressure of the hand on her neck and before she could register what was happening, she felt the syringe enter her neck, emptying it’s drug. A few moments later, her eyes glazed over. Her muscles completely relaxed and her body settling into the massage table. She never felt the earbuds placed in her ear. Offered no resistance as her head was positioned to focus on the TV screen. The video played, the earbuds filled her empty and open mind and the woman hummed to herself as she massaged Valora’s body.
Valora did not know how long everything had taken. The next time she remembered where she was, the woman who had massaged her was looking at her, smiling. “There. Much better.. now, remember what I told you. You can be beautiful and a great fighter, you really should pay more attention to your appearance. Make up. Clothes.” Valora, complete with the same vapid smile on her face as the others in the clinic as she listened intently and nodded her head. The woman smiled. “Good girl. Now, come. Blair should be ready.” Valora got up, got dressed and followed out to the main waiting room area. Blair was indeed ready
Memphis, Tennessee:
Now it was Val’s turn to be injured, and carted out from ringside unconscious. Naomi couldn’t believe her luck. Blair wouldn’t need much push at all. Soon, there would be another loyal member and this second injury had provided the perfect cover for the actions of the collective.
Naomi proved to be right, even before she had come down to meet up with Bair and ‘check on’ Valora, Blair had already ordered Valora brought to the same clinic Blair had gone to for treatment. Some hours later, Valora is asleep, sedated, with earbuds in listening to the app. This is post a visit to the cult clinic for concussion testing and treatment that Blair came to. Naomi and Blair stand above her talking.
Blair looks from Valora’s prone body to Naomi. “ “I don’t know, Omi…it seems like a pretty severe personality shift. I don’t want her to end up as somebody I, hell somebody SHE doesn’t even recognize. My reconditioning wasn’t nearly as intense and I still have trouble accessing certain memories and even emotions!”
Naomi: “Because those memories and emotions aren't conducive to your most elevated self.”
Blair: “I understand that, but turning her into a carbon copy of me isn’t putting her on the path to her higher self either. I mean, you didn’t reprogram me to be just like you when it was my turn to ascend.”
Naomi: “No, but that’s because you already embodied so many of the qualities that are representative of the Core Values of the StarCross initiative. But that doesn’t mean The Architect didn’t borrow other traits when he constructed your New Image. Yours are just less obvious. It only seems drastic because Valora’s personality is so extremely on one side of the spectrum. This is going to make her more balanced, like you are now…and do you or do you not feel better now?”
Blair: “Feel is a funny choice of words.”
Naomi: “What do you mean?”
Blair: “You know I haven’t been angry in two years? How is that healthy?”
Naomi: “Anger is a waste of energy. Are you saying you want Valora to be angry?”
Blair: “No, i’m saying that we are professional wrestlers. VALORA is a fighter. She needs to be able to tap into certain emotions to do her job.”
Naomi: “...and speaking of doing their job, let’s not forget that you have a job to do as well. You have a responsibility to yourself to fulfill your obligations to this Collective. Remember, this is bigger than you, or Valora, or even me. We are trying to help the world heal. Or have you forgotten now that you’re back on top, hmm? Besides, you being blocked off from anger didn’t hinder your wrestling ability. Because anger wasn’t what motivates you to succeed. Your imposter syndrome does that…and we’d never get rid of it…I mean, just look at everything it’s done for you. Just like fear is her motivator. We won’t touch the tools you need to fulfill your obligations. We just get rid of the junk that’s left behind...you mentioned how isolating it’s been for you since you joined the Collective and Ascended, with not being able to communicate with the lower level members as freely as you once were. Well, now you’ll have someone else on your level. A friend on the inside…”
Naomi looks at Valora.
Naomi: “...and after everything we learned about her. Don’t you think she deserves a friend too? I’ll give you some privacy.”
Blair looks at the prone body of her friend and finally sighs as she takes out her phone and hovers her phone over Valora’s, linking their apps for a bit as Valora’s phone blinks and responds showing an update message:
‘Media Library updated, now implementing level 10 cognitive makeover.’
Blair: “...see you soon, Val.”
Blair left the room, leaving Valora to rest and recover in peace. And to the casual observer, she was resting peacefully. But unknown to Valora, thing meditations and affirmations had begun changing. The cognitive makeover was beginning. One of the attendants at the clinc came in. She set down a stanley cup filled with some unknown fluid. She then took out her syringe and injected the contents into Valora’s IV. She then made her way over and checked Valora’s vitals and took out her phone and nodded. “Yes Doctor. Frankly, I’m surprised she’s in the health she’s in. Her diet is a mess, her blood pressure is a nightmare. I’m surprised her liver hasn’t needed to be replaced.. Yes Doctor, I sent the readouts to the dietician. Her customized diet plan will be waiting when she wakes up.” She looks at Valora’s phone. “Level 10 Cognitive makeover. Isn’t that dangerous, doctor? I mean that’s a lot of change pretty quickly.. Yes doctor.”
Meanwhile, Valora was beginning to undergo changes. Her view towards Blair shifted, increasing her feelings towards her. She was Blair’s bestest friend ever. Blair was her best friend. Valora could trust Blair completely. Blair had been the only one to recognize Valora’s potential. It was Blair after all who had invited Valora to join La Dolce Vita. Joining La Dolce Vita laid the groundwork for her rise to stardom in NEW. Blair always knew what was best and Valora would be much happier if she just relaxed. This would be the past that Valora remembered. Parts of her personality that remembered something different were blocked. Those would only get in the way of Valora’s development and enlightenment.
Next came the thought of the identity. Valora was too angry and anger was a waste of energy. Every time she felt angry, she needed to remember her core mantra:
Be Bold
Be Inspired
Be You.
If that didn’t work, well that’s what the app was for, the app that would be ready to reinforce the cognitive makeover.
And speaking of makeover. If Valora were honest with herself, Valora was pretty much a lost cause, wasn’t she? She was rude, crude. Always swearing and drinking. So much of a tomboy, so much so she had no idea of how to be a girl. Valora couldn’t even raise her daughter properly. No. She had to leave the girl with a foster family because Valora couldn’t even take care of herself, let alone another human being.
Valora faded into the background. Cordoned off. She needed a lot of work. Valerie. Val for short. That was what she would remember. Val was much more socially acceptable. A woman who viewed life as fun, as something to be enjoyed, not just endured. The alcohol addiction was tricky, getting rid of that could be.. Problematic.. But that’s okay. Val was a mom, so she can be a wine mom. That was much more socially acceptable. She didn’t need to be angry. Life was too short. She’d be much happier if she focused on positive energy. Who knows, Val might even be able to be the mother that Valora could never be.
Wouldn’t that be wonderful? Wasn’t that worth sacrificing anything for? Of course it was.
A few days later, Blair Buchannan’s Estate: New Orleans, Louisiana:
Val sat in the office, nervously sipping from her wine cup. When she spoke, she still sounded a lot like Valora, only slightly different. “I dunno doc.. I mean. I went to school for this shit. I’ve had concussions before. This don’t feel like no concussion recovery I’ve gone through before.”
The doctor nods. “I understand. Did you talk to Blair about it?” Val nods. “ Yeah. She said it felt weird to her at first too but she feels much better now.” The doctor nodded. “You’re so used to being angry, you don’t know how to be, well.. To be blunt, a civilized human.” Val nods. “What the fuck doc? Civilized?!” The doctor nodded. “That’s what I’m talking about right there. Do you much energy you just wasted with that outburst? Are you familiar with the concept of a swear jar?” Val nods. “Yeah my mom tried that shi.. Stuff on me when I was a teenager. Everytime I swear, I put money in the jar, right?” The doctor nods. “That’s the general idea and you decide what to do with the money. You could donate to charity, maybe even the collective we have here, there are a number of options.”
Val thinks about this and sighs. “But Doc.. I wrestle for the World Title soon. If I’m not angry…” The doctor nodded, leaning forward, putting her hand on Val’s knee. “Anger isn’t the source of your greatness. I’ve seen your matches. You are remarkable, Valerie. You never give up. You get knocked down, you get back up. You’re the living embodiment of Rocky’s speech to his son in Rocky Balboa.” She then uses her phone and pulls up the clip on youtube and plays it for Valora:
Let me tell you something you already know. The world ain't all sunshine and rainbows. It's a very mean and nasty place and I don't care how tough you are it will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it. You, me, or nobody is gonna hit as hard as life. But it ain't about how hard you hit. It's about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward. How much you can take and keep moving forward. That's how winning is done!
Val takes a sip from her Stanley as she watches and considers and the doctor smiles. “Doesn’t it make sense that it’s willpower and determination more than just anger? With all the energy anger wastes, you’ve essentially been fighting with one hand tied behind your back. As good as you’ve been now, wait until you see how good you can be when you stop wasting energy on anger and embrace the source of your inner strength and power.”
A while later, Val is making her way through the estate, casually drinking from her stanley cup. Then it hits her. This shit must be working! She hasn’t had tequila since.. Right before she beat Rylee like a red-headed stepchild. Shit she thought a bad word. Crap! Twice! Val made her way to her room and put some money in the swear jar. After she did, she noticed another text from Abbigail. She knows she should check in but Samantha’s there and Blair needs Val here at the moment. Val needs to fully recover from the injury and then she can get back. Yeah, that sounds right, doesn’t it?
A day or two later, Valora sat in her room in front of her mirror. This was something she had not really attempted since high school. Her lips were painted a frosted pink. Eyeshadow and eyeliner applied. Her chest heaving as she tried to control her nervousness as she looked at herself in the mirror. Was this right?
As if the universe itself answered Val’s question, Blair appeared behind her placing her hands on Val’s shoulders. “Hey girlie. You look gorge! Seriously, you’ve always been beautiful of course but who knew you were such a heartbreaker?”
Val blushed. It might have been the first time in her life she had done that. Blair not only said she had done it right, not only did she look pretty but had crossed into beautiful territory. Val was on cloud nine. When she spoke, her voice came out as the valley girl accent that Valora had saved to mock things but was Val’s default voice. After all, Blair had made a good point. Telling Val about how Blair had had to leave her Louisiana accent behind and that Val’s hispanic accent was holding her back as well. Val hadn’t really believed that but as always, Blair had been proven right when the dare worked and Val was almost immediately treated differently. Better. That had put an end to any doubt in Val’s mind. Blair knew what was best.
“Ohmygosh! Like you think so? Really? Oh wow.. I was like totes worried I had messed it up or something. I haven’t done this since like high school and the makeup section is like Bwah! And” Val quickly descended into a nervous girl rambling which was brought to an abrupt end when Blair’s index fingers pushed against Val’s temples and began massaging. Val let out a soft moan as her body instantly relaxed.
Blair smiled, seeing the reaction and nodded. “Relax, girlie. Breathe in. Out.” She repeated this with Val a few times before she went into the mantra. ““My core values are what define me, and everything else is just noise. I am the Architect of my own happiness. Success is what makes me happy. I will follow the keys to success as defined by The Architect because The Architect can never be wrong. Say it with me…”
Val and Blair both repeated ‘The Architect can never be wrong.’ a few times. Blair found herself amazed at how well the program was working. Her experience in such matters spoke for itself, and she had a hunch that Val was almost literal putty in her hands. Blair really wanted to help her friend. Naomi had been right. Val was so much happier. So much.. Better.. And both her and Val really needed a friend and had found it in each other. Blair had no trouble taking the next step. She kept walking through the mantra gently increasing the pressure on Val’s temples and Val moaned again, her eyes rolling up into her head as Blair continued:
”I know it’s a lot. You’ve been through so much already and have had to be strong for such a long time…Valora deserve’s to let someone else get into the driver’s seat for a change. You’ll see…life can be easy…as Valerie. Wouldn’t it be nice to take the easy route for a change? To have whatever you want handed to you instead of having to work like a dog for every scrap you can get? Valerie can do that for you. Val can take a seat at the table in rooms Valora would never be welcomed into…It’s time for you to stop playing a supporting role in your life and become the Main Character you were meant to be. You deserve it. .So what do you say…Are you ready to step into your highest self?
Val knew what was meant by this, of course. She knew about Valora. Her life as that woman. She also had been given a taste of this. She had been told about this. This was the end of the trial period, as it were. But it was no choice at all. Val had enjoyed being out so much. Blair made this sound even better. And of course, Valora was not being asked. Val was being asked. In the end, there was only one answer that would escape Val’s lips. “Ohh yess! Yes please! I…I want the help!”
Blair smiled. She also knew there was never going to be any other answer, but these things went so much easier when the new recruit was given the illusion of a choice. Blair helped Val stand and lead her to the initiation room. This is where one’s ascension began.
“Valerie S. You have been hand chosen by The Architect to represent the StarCross Collective and carry out its mission to raise the collective consciousness of the human race through messages of empowerment. By doing this, you will help free the world of its primitive chains so that we all may ascend as one to the next spiritual plane and evolve together as a species. As a demonstration of your commitment to the collective, you are required to perform an act of good will. Out of the two acceptable acts, Confession or Consequence, you have chosen Confession. Is that correct?”
Val nods. “Yes. That is correct.”
“Your confessional is to be recorded for safe keeping and witnessed by a Level10(Blair) and a Senior Officer of The Collective (Naomi). If you for any reason should choose to leave the Collective all ties with it and any of StarCross’s subsidiaries shall be severed and your confession will be destroyed. Do you agree?”
Val nods. “Definitely.”
“Good. Now….What’s the worst thing you’ve ever done?”
Val takes a moment. The worst thing? Valora had so many, many things to choose from. Maybe it was her child? No, leaving the kid with her adopted family was probably the best thing she could have done. There was the violence. She had deliberately ended careers, tried to end careers, tried to kill people in a fight before. No. That wasn’t completely willing. People like Jesse Styles had forced those choices. Her boss made it clear what he expected from New Edge talent.. No, she knows what to choose..
She carefully laid out the details of her confession. The details of what she had done. She went into detail knowing this was being recorded. A recording that was locked behind high security and only people that had the appropriate StarCross security rating could access.
As Val finished the confession, Blar heard Naomi’s voice in a small earpiece in her ear, Naomi said the confession was acceptable and StarCross did not need to look into the Consequence option of initiation.
“Oh Val…” Blair hugs Val and reassures her that she’s done, she and she did a great job. “You’re in, babe. You’re in! Congratulations on getting the Starring Role in your life!”
Val returned the hug eagerly. This was so totally the best day of her life! She felt like a whole new person…
Because she was. She was a better person now..
Unnamed High End Dress Boutique in the French Quarter of New Orleans:
Val never knew how much fun this could be! It was amazing what happened when you got up early enough for brunch! And bottomless mimosas? And her new drinking habit was so much better! Tequila and the heavier liquor kept her sloshed sure, but it was a drunk that hit you differently. If you know, you know. Wine, Mimosa, those amazon smoothies that StarCross kept flowing like water.. It was the best of both worlds, you could be totally sloshed and still function normally!
And Val was the Maid of Honor for Blair’s wedding! No one had ever wanted Valora for a role like that. No. Only Valerie. She could do the role. She really was so much better! For the first time in her life Val felt.. Alive. Like a human being. Like she had a place in this world.
Blair had been fitted for her dress and had sprung the surprise of wanting Val to get fitted too. Val came up and it became obvious very quickly this was Val’s first time being fitted for a dress. Val was painfully aware of this, constantly engaging her nervous tick of tucking her hair behind her ear and fidgeting. The Attendant sighed. “Madame Salinas.. Please. It is imperative you stay as still as possible, oui? We need an accurate measurement!”
Val nods, tucking her hair behind her ear. “S..sorry.” The attendant sighed. “Has Madame been fitted for a dress before?” Val shakes her head. Then remembers. “W..well o..once.. But not in a shop like this.. For m..my Quinceanera.. My mom and the neighborhood moms all worked to get me a nice dress and fit it…” The Attendant thinks. “16th birthday, oui?” Val nods. Blair coughs in surprise. “Prom?” Val shook her head. “ N…no.. no one ever asked me..” She says nervously tucking her hair behind her ear again.
Blair smiled and walked over, putting a hand on Val, rubbing her shoulders. “It’s okay, I went to Prom every year of High School because I only dated seniors and they weren’t that great. However, you’re part of the In Crowd now…it’s time you had a closet that reflects that. Luckily your bestie just so happens to have aPHD in all things en vogue!”
Val smiled and nodded. The attendant got to work and finally got the measurements.. Later on that day, she had her dress that was being made for her right along Blair’s and both would be ready before the Wedding. Blair and Val went for total retail therapy. By the time they were done, Val’s outside had changed as much as her inside. Platinum blonde hair. Nails done and painted. Designer handbag acquired. Professional clothes? Check.
Later, back at Blair’s place:
Val looked at her motorcycle, A prized possession of Valora’s almost iconic to her, really. She blew a bubble with the bubble gum in her mouth. Well this obviously needed to go. With her current outfit she couldn’t ride a motorcycle. She needed a car. Easily affordable. The question was.. The bike. It was probably a weak moment for her, but she decided to keep this one reminder of Valora. She would give it to Abbigail Abbigail had been working on learning to ride a motorcycle. And Abbigail could do so. She was still a kid, after all.”
Transportation was soon sorted. Now, came the hard part.
Val sat in the office used by the StarCross therapist and smiled. The therapist was pleased with the results. She looked at Val. “So have you thought about your promo at all?” Val sighs. “Well, umm yea duh. I mean I just.. Like.. I’m kinda confused about what to do.” The female therapist smiled and placed her hand on Val’s knee. “Well I have good news. Since your main job at the moment is professional fighter, though with the way you’re progressing I’m sure other options will present themselves. Anyways, The Architect has come to a decision. New Edge hasn’t even had 5 shows yet and a number of wrestlers have suffered serious injuries. This is unacceptable.”
Val nods. “The Architect can’t be wrong. This is unacceptable.” The therapist smiles and nods. “Good girl. Now, The Architect has decided that since you are still progressing along your path, You will serve another duty for the collective at the moment.” Val’s breath caught in her throat. Finally! She was being entrusted with a role! Her purpose! The therapist leaned forward. “You are our protector, Val. The knight in Shining Armor, like Joan of Arc. Blair must be protected..You and Blair will work together to protect and help each other as the Collective endeavors to clean up New Edge Wrestling.”
Val nods, wiping tears from her eyes. Finally, her skills.. Her.. skill at hurting people, at causing violence.. Finally they had direction. A purpose. Not the random chaos striking out in random directions. The therapist continued on. “Thus you have permission to be the first member of the collective to reveal themselves.” She smiles. “Remember. No swearing. No need to be too confrontational yet. The main goal is to present yourself as professional. The obvious best choice to represent New Edge. If you win the belt, that will help us really spread our message.”
And finally, the promo:
Val is shown running on a treadmill, increasing the incline and speed and easily catching up. In fact, Val seems faster and in better shape than she has been since her return. After the brief exercise montage including the treadmill, push ups, pull ups, resistance training and the like, all the while dressed in a New Edge Hoodie
The camera then switches to an office setting and we see Val has changed clothes. She now wears a skirt, a nice, professional high end, business style blouse
Val takes a sip from her stanley cup and clears her throat, running her fingers through her newly blonde hair as she thinks.
“Now, like I know what everyone is expecting. “But Val you have to team with Roger Wright! Didn’t he like, just try to beat up your student?”
Val blows a bubble and nods. “Yeah. He did. And My girl like totes came out on top. Now, Roger made it clear he doesn’t trust Valora. I don’t blame him. Valora was a horrible, miserable human being and the world is much better off with her retirement.”
Val lets out a small laugh as she shakes her head and holds up a hand. “Don’t worry. I mighta taken a bit of a bump on the old noggin, but I’m not stealing Rylee’s multiple personality disorder. But during my recovery, I..got it. I had an epiphany. I took a chance and tried a different approach to recovery and OhmyGosh! Likeit worked. Valora wasted soo much energy being angry and miserable all the time. Roger Wright was absolutely right. Valora was a gloryhound. But he seems to have forgotten a few things. He forgot that in the run up to the triple threat match, Valora made it crystal clear to her student not to underestimate Roger Wright. That Roger Wright was one of the few of NEW’s top talent that had earned her respect. Now, I know Roger Wright likely doesn’t care about what anyone thinks of him. I won’t criticize that since Valora had much the same trait.”
Another bubble is blown as Val drinks from her cup and nods. “ I know, right now the fans are panicking. “OHmyGosh! Val.. how can you and Roger Wright like.. Ever work together!?” Val shrugs. “It’s simple, really. Roger Wright and I are professionals. We’re not friends. Like prolly never will be. We may or may not even like each other. It doesn’t matter. Both of us are veteran, professional fighters. We care about doing our job. We care about the fans and we both realize the chance we have. The Bossman himself and like the World Champ. I get the chance to get my hands on my opponent at Tension in Texas. Now normally, when talking about him, Valora would like totes rant and rave, curse and swear. But that isn’t going to convince anyone about who should be the face of the company.”
Val clears her throat here and looks into the camera. “Which brings me to you, Mr. Styles. You can’t seriously come out and tell anyone that you and your cousin are on the same page. That you can really, truly, trust your cousin to be there for you? Let me paint you a picture, bossman. The match is going against you at the moment I’ve got you held in the corner and Roger Wright is intent on paying you back for screwing him over and well beating the bejesus out of you. Can you trust that Johnny will come? Or that he won’t be laughing or wander off or pull some other stunt?”
Val nods. “I can say yes to that, Mr. Styles. Roger Wright might not like me, but if I were in trouble, I believe he will help me out. Likewise, he can rest assured I will totes have his back. That compact can be made because it’s a one match only thing. And we are professionals.” Val pauses for a moment and shrugs her shoulders. “Hey bossman, I’d be willin’ that Valora flawed as she is, won the World Title, she made you a pretty penny. I can imagine your profit margins went through the roof.. Oh and Rog.. No one cares about me. Coulda fooled me. When I won the belt in Mexico City, the crowd cheered so loud, it registered as a small earthquake.”
She pauses to take a drink from her cup and nods. “Back to you, Mr. Styles. As I was saying, I’m sure I made you a lot of money as World Champ. Furthermore, Much as you might not like us, much as you might enjoy making fun of us. Much as you might pull your little tricks and play your little games at the end of the day you have one truth… People like me and Blair make any title we hold more prestigious and important. What has Johnny done as Champ? If I went up to 10 NEW fans and asked them who the World Champ is, I betcha at least 6 of them wouldn’t know.” Val leans forward. “You’re a smart businessman, Jesse Styles. You’re real good with the numbers. You know Johnny Stylez is bad for business. He is good for generating trouble. He is good at letting you down, stabbing you in the back. He doesn’t care about the World Title. He doesn’t care about New Edge Wrestling. He doesn’t care about you. He cares about himself, his own ego and oh yeah the various drugs he indulges in that make him eminently unreliable. Do the math. I’m not asking you to help me at Tension in Texas. I’m asking you to not help him. Let him stand on his own for once in his miserable life.”
Val shrugs. “Which brings me to you, Johnny Stylez. As miserable a person as Valora was, she was nowhere near your level. You are a miserable little parasite. A degenerate in every sense of the world. You believe that everyone and everything in this world exists only to feed your ego. Now speaking as someone who has some experience in the deep dark places one can sink to, I know the act. You come out, do your little dance and run off the mouth.. And it’s all a lie. All an act. You’re the poster child for that old song from Evanesceance, ‘Everybody’s Fool’ Your life. Your existence.. It’s all a lie. You run off at the mouth, dance and put on a show then what? You go home, miserable and alone. But look at the bright side. After this tag match reveals the cracks between you and Jesse and after Rog and I beat you two from one end of the ring to the other, at least you’ll still have your belt. At least until Tension in Texas where either I’ll beat you and take the World Title once more only this time, I’ll be totes an even better champ than I was before. Or, Jesse will crunch the numbers, do the math and decide that Val is a better bet, a better partner, a better Champion than you could ever hope to be. Think about it, Johnny. Can you really trust Jesse?”
Val drinks from her cup and shrugs her shoulders. “And thus endeth the lesson. Rog and I don’t have to be best friends. We have to work together for one single match. We can both do that. You two? You two know you can’t trust each other. You two can not say that there is no risk of Johnny getting lost and phoning in his performance in New Orleans. Or stabbing Jesse in the back. Likewise, Johnny can’t be 100% sure Jesse hasn’t finally come to his senses and realizing that Johnny is a bad bet. Bad for business.”
Val winks at the camera and blows a kiss. “Lookin’ for to the match boys! It’s gonna be a blast. And Rog and I can make it last as long as we want. Might wanna think about that and reflect on how bad you two just stepped in it.”
Flashback 1
Unknown Private Rehab center, After the Ignite where Johnny Styles injured Blair Buchannan:
Valora had been looking around since the moment she and Blair had walked into the rehab center. Almost immediately her spidey senses were pinging. She couldn’t quite put her finger on it, but something was wrong. Her thoughts were interrupted by a poke in the ribs from Blair. “Well? What do you think?”
Valora took a look around and wrinkled her nose. “Everyone’s so.. Happy. Like creepy happy.” And it was. Everyone here looked like they were freshly lobotomized, or bimbioized… or more likely, heavily sedated. That was it. At least two people in the waiting area were heavily drugged. She looks back at Blair. “I swear to god, Hermana, if your nurse’s name is Ratched, I’m carrying you out of here.”
Just then, a woman came up and smiled. “You’ll be happy to know we don’t have anyone by that name here, Ms. Salinas.” Valora turns and raises an eyebrow. The woman gives Valora a creepy smile. “Blair told us about your impending arrival. We do have a policy that we need to know who will be here, I’m sure you understand.” Valora nods. “Well.. yeah been to my share of physical rehab centers so..” The woman nods. “Indeed.. You seem in need of our services, now.. If I might be so bold.. Those are some deep bruises..” She leans in and lowers her voice to just above a whisper. “I’m sure at your age you’re noticing it takes longer to recover. Perhaps we can help? You’re going to be here anyways.” Blair chimes in. “Great idea. Val.. you’re getting a spa day. On me!”
Valora opens her mouth to reply and the woman smiles. “Perfect! Right this way, Ms. Salinas..” Valora looks around, trying to argue but allows herself to be led away by the nurses to one room while Blair heads off to another.
In the room, the woman looks at Valora. “Top off. Bottom… at your discretion.” Valora turns to her. “Usually I have people buy me dinner before I get naked for them.” The woman replies without missing a beat. “A woman with standards.” She says looking over Valora and taking a moment, obviously appreciating the view. She then walks over and disguises her staring as more professional by looking at the bruises and injuries.
The woman nods. “Lay down on your stomach please. Let’s get started.” Valora does as she’s told, settling into the massage table. She felt the pressure of the hand on her neck and before she could register what was happening, she felt the syringe enter her neck, emptying it’s drug. A few moments later, her eyes glazed over. Her muscles completely relaxed and her body settling into the massage table. She never felt the earbuds placed in her ear. Offered no resistance as her head was positioned to focus on the TV screen. The video played, the earbuds filled her empty and open mind and the woman hummed to herself as she massaged Valora’s body.
Valora did not know how long everything had taken. The next time she remembered where she was, the woman who had massaged her was looking at her, smiling. “There. Much better.. now, remember what I told you. You can be beautiful and a great fighter, you really should pay more attention to your appearance. Make up. Clothes.” Valora, complete with the same vapid smile on her face as the others in the clinic as she listened intently and nodded her head. The woman smiled. “Good girl. Now, come. Blair should be ready.” Valora got up, got dressed and followed out to the main waiting room area. Blair was indeed ready
Memphis, Tennessee:
Now it was Val’s turn to be injured, and carted out from ringside unconscious. Naomi couldn’t believe her luck. Blair wouldn’t need much push at all. Soon, there would be another loyal member and this second injury had provided the perfect cover for the actions of the collective.
Naomi proved to be right, even before she had come down to meet up with Bair and ‘check on’ Valora, Blair had already ordered Valora brought to the same clinic Blair had gone to for treatment. Some hours later, Valora is asleep, sedated, with earbuds in listening to the app. This is post a visit to the cult clinic for concussion testing and treatment that Blair came to. Naomi and Blair stand above her talking.
Blair looks from Valora’s prone body to Naomi. “ “I don’t know, Omi…it seems like a pretty severe personality shift. I don’t want her to end up as somebody I, hell somebody SHE doesn’t even recognize. My reconditioning wasn’t nearly as intense and I still have trouble accessing certain memories and even emotions!”
Naomi: “Because those memories and emotions aren't conducive to your most elevated self.”
Blair: “I understand that, but turning her into a carbon copy of me isn’t putting her on the path to her higher self either. I mean, you didn’t reprogram me to be just like you when it was my turn to ascend.”
Naomi: “No, but that’s because you already embodied so many of the qualities that are representative of the Core Values of the StarCross initiative. But that doesn’t mean The Architect didn’t borrow other traits when he constructed your New Image. Yours are just less obvious. It only seems drastic because Valora’s personality is so extremely on one side of the spectrum. This is going to make her more balanced, like you are now…and do you or do you not feel better now?”
Blair: “Feel is a funny choice of words.”
Naomi: “What do you mean?”
Blair: “You know I haven’t been angry in two years? How is that healthy?”
Naomi: “Anger is a waste of energy. Are you saying you want Valora to be angry?”
Blair: “No, i’m saying that we are professional wrestlers. VALORA is a fighter. She needs to be able to tap into certain emotions to do her job.”
Naomi: “...and speaking of doing their job, let’s not forget that you have a job to do as well. You have a responsibility to yourself to fulfill your obligations to this Collective. Remember, this is bigger than you, or Valora, or even me. We are trying to help the world heal. Or have you forgotten now that you’re back on top, hmm? Besides, you being blocked off from anger didn’t hinder your wrestling ability. Because anger wasn’t what motivates you to succeed. Your imposter syndrome does that…and we’d never get rid of it…I mean, just look at everything it’s done for you. Just like fear is her motivator. We won’t touch the tools you need to fulfill your obligations. We just get rid of the junk that’s left behind...you mentioned how isolating it’s been for you since you joined the Collective and Ascended, with not being able to communicate with the lower level members as freely as you once were. Well, now you’ll have someone else on your level. A friend on the inside…”
Naomi looks at Valora.
Naomi: “...and after everything we learned about her. Don’t you think she deserves a friend too? I’ll give you some privacy.”
Blair looks at the prone body of her friend and finally sighs as she takes out her phone and hovers her phone over Valora’s, linking their apps for a bit as Valora’s phone blinks and responds showing an update message:
‘Media Library updated, now implementing level 10 cognitive makeover.’
Blair: “...see you soon, Val.”
Blair left the room, leaving Valora to rest and recover in peace. And to the casual observer, she was resting peacefully. But unknown to Valora, thing meditations and affirmations had begun changing. The cognitive makeover was beginning. One of the attendants at the clinc came in. She set down a stanley cup filled with some unknown fluid. She then took out her syringe and injected the contents into Valora’s IV. She then made her way over and checked Valora’s vitals and took out her phone and nodded. “Yes Doctor. Frankly, I’m surprised she’s in the health she’s in. Her diet is a mess, her blood pressure is a nightmare. I’m surprised her liver hasn’t needed to be replaced.. Yes Doctor, I sent the readouts to the dietician. Her customized diet plan will be waiting when she wakes up.” She looks at Valora’s phone. “Level 10 Cognitive makeover. Isn’t that dangerous, doctor? I mean that’s a lot of change pretty quickly.. Yes doctor.”
Meanwhile, Valora was beginning to undergo changes. Her view towards Blair shifted, increasing her feelings towards her. She was Blair’s bestest friend ever. Blair was her best friend. Valora could trust Blair completely. Blair had been the only one to recognize Valora’s potential. It was Blair after all who had invited Valora to join La Dolce Vita. Joining La Dolce Vita laid the groundwork for her rise to stardom in NEW. Blair always knew what was best and Valora would be much happier if she just relaxed. This would be the past that Valora remembered. Parts of her personality that remembered something different were blocked. Those would only get in the way of Valora’s development and enlightenment.
Next came the thought of the identity. Valora was too angry and anger was a waste of energy. Every time she felt angry, she needed to remember her core mantra:
Be Bold
Be Inspired
Be You.
If that didn’t work, well that’s what the app was for, the app that would be ready to reinforce the cognitive makeover.
And speaking of makeover. If Valora were honest with herself, Valora was pretty much a lost cause, wasn’t she? She was rude, crude. Always swearing and drinking. So much of a tomboy, so much so she had no idea of how to be a girl. Valora couldn’t even raise her daughter properly. No. She had to leave the girl with a foster family because Valora couldn’t even take care of herself, let alone another human being.
Valora faded into the background. Cordoned off. She needed a lot of work. Valerie. Val for short. That was what she would remember. Val was much more socially acceptable. A woman who viewed life as fun, as something to be enjoyed, not just endured. The alcohol addiction was tricky, getting rid of that could be.. Problematic.. But that’s okay. Val was a mom, so she can be a wine mom. That was much more socially acceptable. She didn’t need to be angry. Life was too short. She’d be much happier if she focused on positive energy. Who knows, Val might even be able to be the mother that Valora could never be.
Wouldn’t that be wonderful? Wasn’t that worth sacrificing anything for? Of course it was.
A few days later, Blair Buchannan’s Estate: New Orleans, Louisiana:
Val sat in the office, nervously sipping from her wine cup. When she spoke, she still sounded a lot like Valora, only slightly different. “I dunno doc.. I mean. I went to school for this shit. I’ve had concussions before. This don’t feel like no concussion recovery I’ve gone through before.”
The doctor nods. “I understand. Did you talk to Blair about it?” Val nods. “ Yeah. She said it felt weird to her at first too but she feels much better now.” The doctor nodded. “You’re so used to being angry, you don’t know how to be, well.. To be blunt, a civilized human.” Val nods. “What the fuck doc? Civilized?!” The doctor nodded. “That’s what I’m talking about right there. Do you much energy you just wasted with that outburst? Are you familiar with the concept of a swear jar?” Val nods. “Yeah my mom tried that shi.. Stuff on me when I was a teenager. Everytime I swear, I put money in the jar, right?” The doctor nods. “That’s the general idea and you decide what to do with the money. You could donate to charity, maybe even the collective we have here, there are a number of options.”
Val thinks about this and sighs. “But Doc.. I wrestle for the World Title soon. If I’m not angry…” The doctor nodded, leaning forward, putting her hand on Val’s knee. “Anger isn’t the source of your greatness. I’ve seen your matches. You are remarkable, Valerie. You never give up. You get knocked down, you get back up. You’re the living embodiment of Rocky’s speech to his son in Rocky Balboa.” She then uses her phone and pulls up the clip on youtube and plays it for Valora:
Let me tell you something you already know. The world ain't all sunshine and rainbows. It's a very mean and nasty place and I don't care how tough you are it will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it. You, me, or nobody is gonna hit as hard as life. But it ain't about how hard you hit. It's about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward. How much you can take and keep moving forward. That's how winning is done!
Val takes a sip from her Stanley as she watches and considers and the doctor smiles. “Doesn’t it make sense that it’s willpower and determination more than just anger? With all the energy anger wastes, you’ve essentially been fighting with one hand tied behind your back. As good as you’ve been now, wait until you see how good you can be when you stop wasting energy on anger and embrace the source of your inner strength and power.”
A while later, Val is making her way through the estate, casually drinking from her stanley cup. Then it hits her. This shit must be working! She hasn’t had tequila since.. Right before she beat Rylee like a red-headed stepchild. Shit she thought a bad word. Crap! Twice! Val made her way to her room and put some money in the swear jar. After she did, she noticed another text from Abbigail. She knows she should check in but Samantha’s there and Blair needs Val here at the moment. Val needs to fully recover from the injury and then she can get back. Yeah, that sounds right, doesn’t it?
A day or two later, Valora sat in her room in front of her mirror. This was something she had not really attempted since high school. Her lips were painted a frosted pink. Eyeshadow and eyeliner applied. Her chest heaving as she tried to control her nervousness as she looked at herself in the mirror. Was this right?
As if the universe itself answered Val’s question, Blair appeared behind her placing her hands on Val’s shoulders. “Hey girlie. You look gorge! Seriously, you’ve always been beautiful of course but who knew you were such a heartbreaker?”
Val blushed. It might have been the first time in her life she had done that. Blair not only said she had done it right, not only did she look pretty but had crossed into beautiful territory. Val was on cloud nine. When she spoke, her voice came out as the valley girl accent that Valora had saved to mock things but was Val’s default voice. After all, Blair had made a good point. Telling Val about how Blair had had to leave her Louisiana accent behind and that Val’s hispanic accent was holding her back as well. Val hadn’t really believed that but as always, Blair had been proven right when the dare worked and Val was almost immediately treated differently. Better. That had put an end to any doubt in Val’s mind. Blair knew what was best.
“Ohmygosh! Like you think so? Really? Oh wow.. I was like totes worried I had messed it up or something. I haven’t done this since like high school and the makeup section is like Bwah! And” Val quickly descended into a nervous girl rambling which was brought to an abrupt end when Blair’s index fingers pushed against Val’s temples and began massaging. Val let out a soft moan as her body instantly relaxed.
Blair smiled, seeing the reaction and nodded. “Relax, girlie. Breathe in. Out.” She repeated this with Val a few times before she went into the mantra. ““My core values are what define me, and everything else is just noise. I am the Architect of my own happiness. Success is what makes me happy. I will follow the keys to success as defined by The Architect because The Architect can never be wrong. Say it with me…”
Val and Blair both repeated ‘The Architect can never be wrong.’ a few times. Blair found herself amazed at how well the program was working. Her experience in such matters spoke for itself, and she had a hunch that Val was almost literal putty in her hands. Blair really wanted to help her friend. Naomi had been right. Val was so much happier. So much.. Better.. And both her and Val really needed a friend and had found it in each other. Blair had no trouble taking the next step. She kept walking through the mantra gently increasing the pressure on Val’s temples and Val moaned again, her eyes rolling up into her head as Blair continued:
”I know it’s a lot. You’ve been through so much already and have had to be strong for such a long time…Valora deserve’s to let someone else get into the driver’s seat for a change. You’ll see…life can be easy…as Valerie. Wouldn’t it be nice to take the easy route for a change? To have whatever you want handed to you instead of having to work like a dog for every scrap you can get? Valerie can do that for you. Val can take a seat at the table in rooms Valora would never be welcomed into…It’s time for you to stop playing a supporting role in your life and become the Main Character you were meant to be. You deserve it. .So what do you say…Are you ready to step into your highest self?
Val knew what was meant by this, of course. She knew about Valora. Her life as that woman. She also had been given a taste of this. She had been told about this. This was the end of the trial period, as it were. But it was no choice at all. Val had enjoyed being out so much. Blair made this sound even better. And of course, Valora was not being asked. Val was being asked. In the end, there was only one answer that would escape Val’s lips. “Ohh yess! Yes please! I…I want the help!”
Blair smiled. She also knew there was never going to be any other answer, but these things went so much easier when the new recruit was given the illusion of a choice. Blair helped Val stand and lead her to the initiation room. This is where one’s ascension began.
“Valerie S. You have been hand chosen by The Architect to represent the StarCross Collective and carry out its mission to raise the collective consciousness of the human race through messages of empowerment. By doing this, you will help free the world of its primitive chains so that we all may ascend as one to the next spiritual plane and evolve together as a species. As a demonstration of your commitment to the collective, you are required to perform an act of good will. Out of the two acceptable acts, Confession or Consequence, you have chosen Confession. Is that correct?”
Val nods. “Yes. That is correct.”
“Your confessional is to be recorded for safe keeping and witnessed by a Level10(Blair) and a Senior Officer of The Collective (Naomi). If you for any reason should choose to leave the Collective all ties with it and any of StarCross’s subsidiaries shall be severed and your confession will be destroyed. Do you agree?”
Val nods. “Definitely.”
“Good. Now….What’s the worst thing you’ve ever done?”
Val takes a moment. The worst thing? Valora had so many, many things to choose from. Maybe it was her child? No, leaving the kid with her adopted family was probably the best thing she could have done. There was the violence. She had deliberately ended careers, tried to end careers, tried to kill people in a fight before. No. That wasn’t completely willing. People like Jesse Styles had forced those choices. Her boss made it clear what he expected from New Edge talent.. No, she knows what to choose..
She carefully laid out the details of her confession. The details of what she had done. She went into detail knowing this was being recorded. A recording that was locked behind high security and only people that had the appropriate StarCross security rating could access.
As Val finished the confession, Blar heard Naomi’s voice in a small earpiece in her ear, Naomi said the confession was acceptable and StarCross did not need to look into the Consequence option of initiation.
“Oh Val…” Blair hugs Val and reassures her that she’s done, she and she did a great job. “You’re in, babe. You’re in! Congratulations on getting the Starring Role in your life!”
Val returned the hug eagerly. This was so totally the best day of her life! She felt like a whole new person…
Because she was. She was a better person now..
Unnamed High End Dress Boutique in the French Quarter of New Orleans:
Val never knew how much fun this could be! It was amazing what happened when you got up early enough for brunch! And bottomless mimosas? And her new drinking habit was so much better! Tequila and the heavier liquor kept her sloshed sure, but it was a drunk that hit you differently. If you know, you know. Wine, Mimosa, those amazon smoothies that StarCross kept flowing like water.. It was the best of both worlds, you could be totally sloshed and still function normally!
And Val was the Maid of Honor for Blair’s wedding! No one had ever wanted Valora for a role like that. No. Only Valerie. She could do the role. She really was so much better! For the first time in her life Val felt.. Alive. Like a human being. Like she had a place in this world.
Blair had been fitted for her dress and had sprung the surprise of wanting Val to get fitted too. Val came up and it became obvious very quickly this was Val’s first time being fitted for a dress. Val was painfully aware of this, constantly engaging her nervous tick of tucking her hair behind her ear and fidgeting. The Attendant sighed. “Madame Salinas.. Please. It is imperative you stay as still as possible, oui? We need an accurate measurement!”
Val nods, tucking her hair behind her ear. “S..sorry.” The attendant sighed. “Has Madame been fitted for a dress before?” Val shakes her head. Then remembers. “W..well o..once.. But not in a shop like this.. For m..my Quinceanera.. My mom and the neighborhood moms all worked to get me a nice dress and fit it…” The Attendant thinks. “16th birthday, oui?” Val nods. Blair coughs in surprise. “Prom?” Val shook her head. “ N…no.. no one ever asked me..” She says nervously tucking her hair behind her ear again.
Blair smiled and walked over, putting a hand on Val, rubbing her shoulders. “It’s okay, I went to Prom every year of High School because I only dated seniors and they weren’t that great. However, you’re part of the In Crowd now…it’s time you had a closet that reflects that. Luckily your bestie just so happens to have aPHD in all things en vogue!”
Val smiled and nodded. The attendant got to work and finally got the measurements.. Later on that day, she had her dress that was being made for her right along Blair’s and both would be ready before the Wedding. Blair and Val went for total retail therapy. By the time they were done, Val’s outside had changed as much as her inside. Platinum blonde hair. Nails done and painted. Designer handbag acquired. Professional clothes? Check.
Later, back at Blair’s place:
Val looked at her motorcycle, A prized possession of Valora’s almost iconic to her, really. She blew a bubble with the bubble gum in her mouth. Well this obviously needed to go. With her current outfit she couldn’t ride a motorcycle. She needed a car. Easily affordable. The question was.. The bike. It was probably a weak moment for her, but she decided to keep this one reminder of Valora. She would give it to Abbigail Abbigail had been working on learning to ride a motorcycle. And Abbigail could do so. She was still a kid, after all.”
Transportation was soon sorted. Now, came the hard part.
Val sat in the office used by the StarCross therapist and smiled. The therapist was pleased with the results. She looked at Val. “So have you thought about your promo at all?” Val sighs. “Well, umm yea duh. I mean I just.. Like.. I’m kinda confused about what to do.” The female therapist smiled and placed her hand on Val’s knee. “Well I have good news. Since your main job at the moment is professional fighter, though with the way you’re progressing I’m sure other options will present themselves. Anyways, The Architect has come to a decision. New Edge hasn’t even had 5 shows yet and a number of wrestlers have suffered serious injuries. This is unacceptable.”
Val nods. “The Architect can’t be wrong. This is unacceptable.” The therapist smiles and nods. “Good girl. Now, The Architect has decided that since you are still progressing along your path, You will serve another duty for the collective at the moment.” Val’s breath caught in her throat. Finally! She was being entrusted with a role! Her purpose! The therapist leaned forward. “You are our protector, Val. The knight in Shining Armor, like Joan of Arc. Blair must be protected..You and Blair will work together to protect and help each other as the Collective endeavors to clean up New Edge Wrestling.”
Val nods, wiping tears from her eyes. Finally, her skills.. Her.. skill at hurting people, at causing violence.. Finally they had direction. A purpose. Not the random chaos striking out in random directions. The therapist continued on. “Thus you have permission to be the first member of the collective to reveal themselves.” She smiles. “Remember. No swearing. No need to be too confrontational yet. The main goal is to present yourself as professional. The obvious best choice to represent New Edge. If you win the belt, that will help us really spread our message.”
And finally, the promo:
Val is shown running on a treadmill, increasing the incline and speed and easily catching up. In fact, Val seems faster and in better shape than she has been since her return. After the brief exercise montage including the treadmill, push ups, pull ups, resistance training and the like, all the while dressed in a New Edge Hoodie
The camera then switches to an office setting and we see Val has changed clothes. She now wears a skirt, a nice, professional high end, business style blouse
Val takes a sip from her stanley cup and clears her throat, running her fingers through her newly blonde hair as she thinks.
“Now, like I know what everyone is expecting. “But Val you have to team with Roger Wright! Didn’t he like, just try to beat up your student?”
Val blows a bubble and nods. “Yeah. He did. And My girl like totes came out on top. Now, Roger made it clear he doesn’t trust Valora. I don’t blame him. Valora was a horrible, miserable human being and the world is much better off with her retirement.”
Val lets out a small laugh as she shakes her head and holds up a hand. “Don’t worry. I mighta taken a bit of a bump on the old noggin, but I’m not stealing Rylee’s multiple personality disorder. But during my recovery, I..got it. I had an epiphany. I took a chance and tried a different approach to recovery and OhmyGosh! Likeit worked. Valora wasted soo much energy being angry and miserable all the time. Roger Wright was absolutely right. Valora was a gloryhound. But he seems to have forgotten a few things. He forgot that in the run up to the triple threat match, Valora made it crystal clear to her student not to underestimate Roger Wright. That Roger Wright was one of the few of NEW’s top talent that had earned her respect. Now, I know Roger Wright likely doesn’t care about what anyone thinks of him. I won’t criticize that since Valora had much the same trait.”
Another bubble is blown as Val drinks from her cup and nods. “ I know, right now the fans are panicking. “OHmyGosh! Val.. how can you and Roger Wright like.. Ever work together!?” Val shrugs. “It’s simple, really. Roger Wright and I are professionals. We’re not friends. Like prolly never will be. We may or may not even like each other. It doesn’t matter. Both of us are veteran, professional fighters. We care about doing our job. We care about the fans and we both realize the chance we have. The Bossman himself and like the World Champ. I get the chance to get my hands on my opponent at Tension in Texas. Now normally, when talking about him, Valora would like totes rant and rave, curse and swear. But that isn’t going to convince anyone about who should be the face of the company.”
Val clears her throat here and looks into the camera. “Which brings me to you, Mr. Styles. You can’t seriously come out and tell anyone that you and your cousin are on the same page. That you can really, truly, trust your cousin to be there for you? Let me paint you a picture, bossman. The match is going against you at the moment I’ve got you held in the corner and Roger Wright is intent on paying you back for screwing him over and well beating the bejesus out of you. Can you trust that Johnny will come? Or that he won’t be laughing or wander off or pull some other stunt?”
Val nods. “I can say yes to that, Mr. Styles. Roger Wright might not like me, but if I were in trouble, I believe he will help me out. Likewise, he can rest assured I will totes have his back. That compact can be made because it’s a one match only thing. And we are professionals.” Val pauses for a moment and shrugs her shoulders. “Hey bossman, I’d be willin’ that Valora flawed as she is, won the World Title, she made you a pretty penny. I can imagine your profit margins went through the roof.. Oh and Rog.. No one cares about me. Coulda fooled me. When I won the belt in Mexico City, the crowd cheered so loud, it registered as a small earthquake.”
She pauses to take a drink from her cup and nods. “Back to you, Mr. Styles. As I was saying, I’m sure I made you a lot of money as World Champ. Furthermore, Much as you might not like us, much as you might enjoy making fun of us. Much as you might pull your little tricks and play your little games at the end of the day you have one truth… People like me and Blair make any title we hold more prestigious and important. What has Johnny done as Champ? If I went up to 10 NEW fans and asked them who the World Champ is, I betcha at least 6 of them wouldn’t know.” Val leans forward. “You’re a smart businessman, Jesse Styles. You’re real good with the numbers. You know Johnny Stylez is bad for business. He is good for generating trouble. He is good at letting you down, stabbing you in the back. He doesn’t care about the World Title. He doesn’t care about New Edge Wrestling. He doesn’t care about you. He cares about himself, his own ego and oh yeah the various drugs he indulges in that make him eminently unreliable. Do the math. I’m not asking you to help me at Tension in Texas. I’m asking you to not help him. Let him stand on his own for once in his miserable life.”
Val shrugs. “Which brings me to you, Johnny Stylez. As miserable a person as Valora was, she was nowhere near your level. You are a miserable little parasite. A degenerate in every sense of the world. You believe that everyone and everything in this world exists only to feed your ego. Now speaking as someone who has some experience in the deep dark places one can sink to, I know the act. You come out, do your little dance and run off the mouth.. And it’s all a lie. All an act. You’re the poster child for that old song from Evanesceance, ‘Everybody’s Fool’ Your life. Your existence.. It’s all a lie. You run off at the mouth, dance and put on a show then what? You go home, miserable and alone. But look at the bright side. After this tag match reveals the cracks between you and Jesse and after Rog and I beat you two from one end of the ring to the other, at least you’ll still have your belt. At least until Tension in Texas where either I’ll beat you and take the World Title once more only this time, I’ll be totes an even better champ than I was before. Or, Jesse will crunch the numbers, do the math and decide that Val is a better bet, a better partner, a better Champion than you could ever hope to be. Think about it, Johnny. Can you really trust Jesse?”
Val drinks from her cup and shrugs her shoulders. “And thus endeth the lesson. Rog and I don’t have to be best friends. We have to work together for one single match. We can both do that. You two? You two know you can’t trust each other. You two can not say that there is no risk of Johnny getting lost and phoning in his performance in New Orleans. Or stabbing Jesse in the back. Likewise, Johnny can’t be 100% sure Jesse hasn’t finally come to his senses and realizing that Johnny is a bad bet. Bad for business.”
Val winks at the camera and blows a kiss. “Lookin’ for to the match boys! It’s gonna be a blast. And Rog and I can make it last as long as we want. Might wanna think about that and reflect on how bad you two just stepped in it.”