Who Else but Me? [Dylan Supremacy #1]
Jan 19, 2023 11:47:52 GMT -5
Mongo the Destroyer, Dave D-Flipz, and 4 more like this
Post by Dylan on Jan 19, 2023 11:47:52 GMT -5
The first thing we see is Dylan stuffing a backpack full of foods that are easy to eat. Nothing to cook although where he was going, he would have plenty of opportunities to heat things up. Today was when he and Spike decided to meet up and begin the journey through Hell. His hands were shaky as he placed the last Iced Honey Bun in his backpack. He tosses a few survival things on top of the snacks. A significant length of rope, a flashlight, and a large knife that would make Aiden Merric drool. And a large roll of duck tape too. Dylan zipped the bag up and gave Sir Charles Worthington the Corgi a few scritches behind the ear before standing up.
Dylan: Be a good boy now, you hear?
Sir Charles barks and wags his nub of a tail before a hell portal opens up and a grinning face appears.
Spike: Are you ready for your date with destiny?
Dylan smiles and stands up.
Dylan: I sure hope I’m not going on a date with Satan. If his name is Destiny I might actually leave.
Spike chuckles and Dylan steps through the hell portal as it closes behind him.
Are you listening to me now?
Dylan adjusts the camera, kneeling as he tries to get a straight angle. After fiddling with it for a moment he gets it to a satisfactory spot and scoots back, sitting on a large rock in the hellscape. He leans forward, fire in his eyes. Or a reflection. This is Hell after all.
Kira. I hope you're happy with the choice you made. Because not only has James Raymond failed you in the run for Supremacy, he's now turned his back on you. UZUMAKI falls apart more by the day and you have lost out on another chance to secure the X*Crown in J-RoK. But me? I'm still in it to win it, baby. I have the opportunity of a lifetime to take on some exceptional talent and win the X*Crown for a third time. And when I win that X*Crown, you know what I'm gonna do Kira? I ain't riding back to Japan on my high horse, bragging about how I am better than every sorry son of a bitch under your employ. Although that'd be too sweet.
Pause.
Nah, when I win the X*Crown? I'm taking the first flight back to Atlanta and I'm going to defend against the great underappreciated network stars of GUNS. Because of those fine people in GUNS? Aside from Magnus, they haven't held me back day in and day out. They haven't stacked the odds against me at every turn. And sure, working around obstacles builds character but you never tried to help me build character, Kira. You saw that I was a star that you didn't make. I wasn't homegrown like SKY Force, Brendan Harding, TEMERARIO, or James Raymond. I found success without your guidance and you despised me for it. You're gonna have to sit and keep hating as I spend weeks at a time in Atlanta, working with people who have earned their way up the ladder in the XHF. You can sit in that cozy office and fucking weep, KNOWING that the X*Crown is never coming back to J-RoK so long as I'm prowling the waters it sits in.
Dylan nods, confident in himself.
But as long as I prowl those waters, the X*Crown will never come to SCCW, CAR, or REIGN either. Not that it can come to REIGN since they've shut down... although I wish they had better taste in a final representative in their dying moments. Read my lips guys, nobody wants Steve Awesome anymore. For months, no for years we've seen the same song and dance from Steve. He comes out, talks shit about whoever he's fighting this week. Drives the wedge deeper between himself and his ex-wife and daughter. Wins because frankly? The competition in REIGN was subpar at BEST. No offense Mistress Discipline. Kind of a shame she never got to kick Steve's ass.
Dylan sighs.
Steve, we've had a lot of ill will between us since the first Tara Fenix cruise. Mostly because you stole my arm, wouldn't give it back, and won custody of it. And you taunted me with it for the better half of 2022, until you lost it and Big Drag tried to kill us with an army of clones of my arm. I hold you accountable for everything that went wrong at the BANG! Bros Civil War. I also hold you accountable for everything shitty that happened to me last year. I lost my chance at the Junior Heavyweight Championship, I lost the Visual Kai Championship, I lost End of Days.
He and Zoran may have reconciled, but that one is going to sting for a while.
If you didn't steal my arm, 2022 would have been MY YEAR! Maybe I owe you some thanks because you humbled me by taking my arm, but I turned that around and did the best with what I could do. But I have two arms now, which is twice the arms to beat your head in with! Because of you, I lost so much of my 2022. But I'm back, better than ever. And YOU will NEVER be X*Crown Champion again... I will roll over in my grave before you take that gold!
And as for people who I'd rather die before I let them win the X*Crown again, does Raiden even belong in this match? As far as I'm concerned he should be sitting front row as the real winners fight for the X*Crown. Yeah, Copycat deserves this more than you. Tell me Raiden, how does a guy like you think you deserve this shot? You had THREE OPPORTUNITIES for the X*Crown in 2018, and a lot of people think you walked out empty-handed because you were just facing talent better than you. That isn't the case Raiden. You just don't have what it takes to be the kingfish in a big pond. As long as I've known you and your nasty attitude, you've sufficed coasting off the tailcoats of other guys. As soon as you step up to the plate? You're dropping the ball big time. The Harbinger of Failure doesn't deserve to step into my yard and try to call a shot at the X*Crown. And on my watch, you'll be the guy I pick out and pin to regain my X*Crown.
Dylan brushes his hair out of his face and offers a small grin to the camera.
Oh, Copycat. Sweet, naïve Copycat... it throws me through a loop that you managed to survive through the Xtraction match. But that tells me that I have a lot to learn about Copycat in the next few weeks. Color me impressed because now I have to wash away my preconceived notions of Copycat. Ignore the facts that have surrounded you for years and years and get to know the real you.
Beat.
And Zoran... look man I know we're Super Frenemies and all, but... I need this man... I'm not asking you to lay down for me and go out like the dying old dog you are. But I worked SO HARD for my crowning moment, the End of Days win and the first to three X*Crown reigns... but no matter how deep we bury that hatchet, the scars you left in me run that much deeper. It's MY TIME to step up and become X*Crown Champion once again. At the end of the day it's just business but I know if I beat you it won't put a damper on our friendship.
I'm just sorry instead of being ringside to witness it, it'll be from your corpse I rip that lapel pin and become the X*Crown Champion again.
Dylan adjusts the camera, kneeling as he tries to get a straight angle. After fiddling with it for a moment he gets it to a satisfactory spot and scoots back, sitting on a large rock in the hellscape. He leans forward, fire in his eyes. Or a reflection. This is Hell after all.
Kira. I hope you're happy with the choice you made. Because not only has James Raymond failed you in the run for Supremacy, he's now turned his back on you. UZUMAKI falls apart more by the day and you have lost out on another chance to secure the X*Crown in J-RoK. But me? I'm still in it to win it, baby. I have the opportunity of a lifetime to take on some exceptional talent and win the X*Crown for a third time. And when I win that X*Crown, you know what I'm gonna do Kira? I ain't riding back to Japan on my high horse, bragging about how I am better than every sorry son of a bitch under your employ. Although that'd be too sweet.
Pause.
Nah, when I win the X*Crown? I'm taking the first flight back to Atlanta and I'm going to defend against the great underappreciated network stars of GUNS. Because of those fine people in GUNS? Aside from Magnus, they haven't held me back day in and day out. They haven't stacked the odds against me at every turn. And sure, working around obstacles builds character but you never tried to help me build character, Kira. You saw that I was a star that you didn't make. I wasn't homegrown like SKY Force, Brendan Harding, TEMERARIO, or James Raymond. I found success without your guidance and you despised me for it. You're gonna have to sit and keep hating as I spend weeks at a time in Atlanta, working with people who have earned their way up the ladder in the XHF. You can sit in that cozy office and fucking weep, KNOWING that the X*Crown is never coming back to J-RoK so long as I'm prowling the waters it sits in.
Dylan nods, confident in himself.
But as long as I prowl those waters, the X*Crown will never come to SCCW, CAR, or REIGN either. Not that it can come to REIGN since they've shut down... although I wish they had better taste in a final representative in their dying moments. Read my lips guys, nobody wants Steve Awesome anymore. For months, no for years we've seen the same song and dance from Steve. He comes out, talks shit about whoever he's fighting this week. Drives the wedge deeper between himself and his ex-wife and daughter. Wins because frankly? The competition in REIGN was subpar at BEST. No offense Mistress Discipline. Kind of a shame she never got to kick Steve's ass.
Dylan sighs.
Steve, we've had a lot of ill will between us since the first Tara Fenix cruise. Mostly because you stole my arm, wouldn't give it back, and won custody of it. And you taunted me with it for the better half of 2022, until you lost it and Big Drag tried to kill us with an army of clones of my arm. I hold you accountable for everything that went wrong at the BANG! Bros Civil War. I also hold you accountable for everything shitty that happened to me last year. I lost my chance at the Junior Heavyweight Championship, I lost the Visual Kai Championship, I lost End of Days.
He and Zoran may have reconciled, but that one is going to sting for a while.
If you didn't steal my arm, 2022 would have been MY YEAR! Maybe I owe you some thanks because you humbled me by taking my arm, but I turned that around and did the best with what I could do. But I have two arms now, which is twice the arms to beat your head in with! Because of you, I lost so much of my 2022. But I'm back, better than ever. And YOU will NEVER be X*Crown Champion again... I will roll over in my grave before you take that gold!
And as for people who I'd rather die before I let them win the X*Crown again, does Raiden even belong in this match? As far as I'm concerned he should be sitting front row as the real winners fight for the X*Crown. Yeah, Copycat deserves this more than you. Tell me Raiden, how does a guy like you think you deserve this shot? You had THREE OPPORTUNITIES for the X*Crown in 2018, and a lot of people think you walked out empty-handed because you were just facing talent better than you. That isn't the case Raiden. You just don't have what it takes to be the kingfish in a big pond. As long as I've known you and your nasty attitude, you've sufficed coasting off the tailcoats of other guys. As soon as you step up to the plate? You're dropping the ball big time. The Harbinger of Failure doesn't deserve to step into my yard and try to call a shot at the X*Crown. And on my watch, you'll be the guy I pick out and pin to regain my X*Crown.
Dylan brushes his hair out of his face and offers a small grin to the camera.
Oh, Copycat. Sweet, naïve Copycat... it throws me through a loop that you managed to survive through the Xtraction match. But that tells me that I have a lot to learn about Copycat in the next few weeks. Color me impressed because now I have to wash away my preconceived notions of Copycat. Ignore the facts that have surrounded you for years and years and get to know the real you.
Beat.
And Zoran... look man I know we're Super Frenemies and all, but... I need this man... I'm not asking you to lay down for me and go out like the dying old dog you are. But I worked SO HARD for my crowning moment, the End of Days win and the first to three X*Crown reigns... but no matter how deep we bury that hatchet, the scars you left in me run that much deeper. It's MY TIME to step up and become X*Crown Champion once again. At the end of the day it's just business but I know if I beat you it won't put a damper on our friendship.
I'm just sorry instead of being ringside to witness it, it'll be from your corpse I rip that lapel pin and become the X*Crown Champion again.
Back in Hell, Dylan stares in awe at the scenery around him. All his preconceived notions of what Hell would look like were washed away as it looked less like hellfire and brimstone and more like an island paradise. Smooth sand everywhere, a gentle breeze, palm trees swaying around him. Is this really hell?
Dylan: This sure isn’t like where you live, huh?
Spike shakes his head.
Spike: I get my own little pocket dimension within here. Follow me.
Spike leads Dylan down the sandy shores of this place. Dylan stops for a second to kneel down and feel the sand beneath him. He yelps as each of the grains of sand are spikey and burning hot. He shakes his hand as Spike turns around.
Dylan: Shit. I almost wanted to take my shoes off and stick my feet in the sand.
Spike: Uh, this is Hell? As in, the torture central for the damned? Also, you felt that through your metal hand?
Dylan: Huh… I guess believing I want these to be real is sort of a step in the right direction.
He gestures to the broken finger gifted to him by Poena. Spike shrugs and turns around, leading Dylan into a small path cutting through some brush. They keep walking through for a few minutes before Dylan calls out.
Dylan: So where exactly are we going?
Spike: Satan has a castle in the direct middle of Hell. I’m bringing you right to the edge of the grounds and then you’ll be figuring things out from there on your own.
Dylan: So why can’t we just hell-portal ourselves straight to his room?
Spike: One, it’d be too easy and I thought you wanted a cool trip. And two, you can’t. He’s got some arcane magic that blocks portaling in from anywhere.
Dylan: I guess that makes sense. Any idea how much farther until we get there?
Spike: See… all of this is based on your will. You wanted Hell to look like a post-apocalyptic, fire-and-death kind of place? It’s gonna be the exact opposite. Hence the castaway island. Do you want to get there right away? It’s gonna take you a long time. Patience, young padawan. It’d do you good to have some of it.
Dylan nods, before reaching back for a water bottle dangling off his backpack. He grabs it and takes a sip, the cool water feeling good on his parched throat. The duo continues down the path, winding and twirling through various foliages.
After a few fades covering an hours-long trek, the beach paradise starts to fade away and becomes a hellscape more in line with how everyone perceives it as. Dark rocks cover the floor, coated in soot and ash. The gentle breeze becomes a harsh wind blowing from every direction. The sky goes from sky blue to a deep purple and red, and lightning cracks through the sky as a large castle looms over the horizon. As they inch closer, Spike stops and holds his arm out. Dylan looks down off a cliff that drops hundreds, thousands of feet below them. He gulps and looks around.
Dylan: So, how do we get across? There’s no bridge as far as I can see.
Spike shrugs.
Spike: Remember how I said you’d have to figure things out on your own? This is the first challenge to face Satan.
Dylan looks around, then begins to will a hell portal into existence. But nothing happens, just a few sparks that putter and fizz out.
Spike: No portals, remember?
Dylan: I thought you meant in his main room. The whole grounds are like this?
Dylan nods and looks around. He notices a large rock and gets an idea. He pulls out the length of rope and unspools it, before tossing one end down the cliff. The rope lands on the ground with a few feet to spare, but when tied to the rock it dangles a few feet above the ground. He ties the rope to the rock and pulls a carabiner off of his backpack, clipping that onto the rope and running it through a few belt loops. Dylan sits on the edge of the cliff face, seated facing certain death. He looks at Spike, who offers a nod.
Dylan takes a deep breath and spins around with one hand on the rope and the other on the rock face. He finds halfway decent foot holds and begins the slow descent down the face. He opts to not look down. He didn’t have a fear of heights but this went very far down. Dylan just stared at the rock face, occasionally stopping and looking at patterns before continuing on. It’s a brutally slow few minutes as he makes his way down. Eventually, he holds the last of the rope in his hands and looks down, the ground just feet behind him. He lets go and lands on his robot foot, the metal not affected by the fall.
Spike: Great job. Now how do you plan on getting up the other side?
Dylan looks at the other side where there is no rope to descend from. Dylan jogs over to the other side and checks the rock face. It’s a bit jankier than where he went down, more spots to grab onto. Dylan sighs.
Dylan: Well I’m already in Hell. If I die, I ain’t going far.
And Dylan begins climbing the other face. It’s slower than going down because he has to actually find good hand and foot holds lest he falls to an untimely death. He has a few moments where one of his hands doesn’t get a decent grip but he is able to adjust. The top of the cliff is in sight, he’s almost there! He gets a little cocky and tries to speed up the rest of the face but suddenly he shifts weight from his feet to his hands to get higher and under his right hand, all the rocks fall! His hand swings free and he’s being only held up by his left hand! His legs swing frantically as he tries to swing them back onto the cliff. The rocks under his left hand suddenly begin to crack and Dylan swings his right hand up as high as it can reach…
Top of the cliff shot. A metal hand wraps around the cliff edge and Dylan drags himself to safety. Once he pulled himself over the edge he rolls over onto his back, panting. Heart racing. Having cheated death once again, a small smile creeps over his face.
That smile fades when a hell portal opens up next to him and Spike walks through, clapping.
Spike: Congrats man. Passed the first test.
Dylan sits up, a rather annoyed look on his face.
Dylan: What happened to “no portals?”
Spike shrugs.
Spike: I may have had Tomo block your magic so you had to work a real answer.
He kneels down.
Spike: If not, you’d have looked straight ahead to seeing Satan without earning your way to said meeting. You’d ignore the problems in front of you and it won’t feel satisfying.
Dylan nods.
Spike: Tomo’s gonna keep it up until you make it there or break along the way.
Spike reaches a hand out to him and Dylan grabs it.
Spike: Now come on. You have a demon to catch.
Dylan: Me? What happened to the best team-up since peanut butter and chocolate?
Spike: I actually double-booked myself for Supremacy so I have to train for that. But that castle? It’s just like an on the rails game. As long as you conquer every challenge ahead of you, you’ll meet your goal.
He shakes Dylan’s hand.
Spike: Good luck bro.
Dylan: Thanks.
And with that, Spike backs through a portal and Dylan turns to enter the castle. He grabs the iron bars of the door and yanks them open, stepping into the darkness and letting the doors close behind him.
Fade to black.
