Last Minute (NOC RP 4)
Jul 26, 2023 22:18:20 GMT -5
Mongo the Destroyer, Dave D-Flipz, and 2 more like this
Post by Sam Sawyer on Jul 26, 2023 22:18:20 GMT -5
It was over a week before Sam started to think about anything else. In the first few days after she died, their friends and adoptive family were barely in their thoughts at all, even though they were all obviously worried to death about them. They didn't even care about Mason or Ty, the two they knew were responsible. They didn't feel any anger, only a horrible, crushing emptiness.
Most of their family and friends stopped asking for a response after the first day. Their messages only let Sam know they were there for them, not worried or pressuring. Sam didn't care.
All that mattered was that she was gone. They were supposed to be strong, like her. No matter what happened, no matter how bad, they were supposed to be strong. But all their strength died with her.
Mason must have thought their mother was all that stood between Sam and the darkness. The darkness - a cold and emotionless pursuit of progress - began when Sam had had enough of the pain, of not being by their mother's side, of being scared. They stopped caring about her. They stopped thinking altogether. That silence allowed room for an almost inhuman power to grow. When their mother saved them from the darkness, Mason was the only one of Sam's cult to miss that power. At some point Ty followed. Mason seemed to want to do things the right way at first, pressuring everyone to keep on grinding while letting Sam be themselves. But most of the group were too weak, too human. He needed Sam's power of influence. Sam didn't realize how far he would go to get it.
But despite all the pain, the darkness is nowhere to be seen. They couldn't stop thinking about their mother if they tried.
If they hadn't been chosen to compete for the X*Crown, maybe Mason and Ty would have cooled down over time. Or maybe the police would have caught them for their previous crimes before they struck. But with X*Crown shots being so rare, they were forced to act now. It would bring them so much power, speed things up enough to save years of time. Sam was supposed to get all their power back: to be able to tap into every inch of their physical strength, to regain that sixth sense, to have the ability and the ruthlessness to brainwash or crush anyone that stood in their path. Before, during the darkness, they fought fairly bell to bell, but with eyes set on the future. The X*Crown was the endgame. But as they are now... Sam is completely useless to them.
. . .
Sam opens their eyes and finds themselves in bed. They had another dream about their mom. Instead of letting it fade they can't help but cling on to it again, knowing how much it will hurt. They lie there for almost an hour. Their thoughts slowly give way to a cold silence.
Something tells them to check their phone. It's Friday the 28th. Two days until Night of Champions. They had no intention of being there. Maybe no intention of wrestling ever again. They haven't done any preparation since Overheated so would have no chance of winning anyway... but they open their conversation with Tap Out. It's an endless list of text, growing increasingly urgent, with no reply from Sam. They stare at the screen for a moment, not really reading the messages. They type “I'm fine. I'll be there.”, then send it.
They put their phone down then curl up as if to go back to sleep, immediately regretting it. They cringe thinking of the work they're going to have to do, not in the mood for it at all. They don't even want to think about the night itself. The thought of wrestling makes them want to throw up. They hate it. They know their mom would hate it too. She's always been on their side. It might have been their passion once, but now it disgusts them. They're only going to do this because it's their job. Tap Out are expecting them to wrestle. They're expecting them to be at their best and attempt to bring them the X*Crown. And the XHF, the fans, the Central Savings Bank: they all expect them to be there too. They've never backed out of a match before. As much as they hate wrestling... just one more job to do, then they'll be free.
Five minutes later they drag themselves out of bed. Before they get going they decide to reply to the last messages from their parents in Houston and Joey, belated as usual. After Sam first got back in touch with them on Tuesday, they didn't really need to worry anymore so they can handle a late reply. They type a few cursory replies, fill them in on their new plans, then start looking for the nearest gym.
Before leaving they get a couple of calls and a bunch of texts from Tap Out and XHF but they just ignore them. They've already got what they need. Everything goes well until they step into the hotel corridor. It makes them feel like crawling back into bed. They're not sure if it's laziness, or being out from under the comfort blanket of their hotel room. As horrible as their time has been in there, they miss it already.
. . .
The jog to the gym seems to help. They don't enjoy it like they used to, but they can feel themselves easing into work mode. They ignore almost everyone they see, only muttering “hi” when they really have to. In the back of their mind they still wish they were in bed. It's just a gentle jog, but their legs start aching before they get there so they walk the rest of the way.
Once inside they head straight for the cafeteria. They're not ready for this, physically or mentally. Even after refueling and letting their legs recover, they stay seated. It would be so easy to give up and go back to the hotel. Tap Out wouldn't blame them. They're not even sure why they're doing this. They definitely don't care about the X*Crown, and why should a bunch of wrestling promoters matter to them? Maybe it's their fellow wrestlers at Tap Out, who were passed over and would have loved this chance, whose careers will benefit if the X*Crown comes to Vegas. No, they don't care. But... they have to do it anyway. It's their job.
You can't run from your job. When someone is relying on you, you don't let them down. That's what they've always believed, and they're not going to stop now. They want to, but they can't. When this is all over, maybe they'll sever all of their ties so that nobody relies on them again. But it's too late to back out of this fight.
They take a deep breath and stand up. Their head begins to clear, they know what they have to do. Out of the cafeteria, they find a punching bag hanging by a chain on a black frame. They hit it with a forearm.
Sam: Ow...
Their face screws up in pain as the heavy bag doesn't give. But they simply shake the pain out of their arm, not faltering. They land a few lighter blows, warming up and making sure they have the technique. Then slowly they begin hitting harder and harder. They fight through the pain for almost a minute, the bag budging more and more, but then they have to stop.
They've lost so much weight and muscle since Overheated: they're too vulnerable. If they'd started training on Wednesday, or even yesterday, that extra time would have helped so much. They'll just have to make the most of the time they've got and hope it's enough. For now they take another break, too weak to do anything else right now, and start studying their opponents on their phone.
Over the next few hours they make slow but steady progress. A few people offer them smiles or words of encouragement, and the pop music playing also attempts to inspire, but they're deaf and blind to it all. They just strengthen their muscles with bikes and weights, and continue to pummel the bag.
On one of their breaks they order a punching bag of their own and have it delivered to their hotel. It'll be waiting for them when the gym closes.
At eight o'clock, one hour before closing, physically they feel almost like their old self. Their kicks, forearms and lariats are landing almost like they used to. They make up their mind to reply to an unanswered text from Tap Out, asking them if they want to wrestle at Tap Out 16. They're not sure if they do, but they're going to say yes. They're not going to leave them hanging another month: it's either that or quit. Although they hated having to train today, and don't really want to ever do it again after Sunday, it wasn't as bad as they thought it would be. They can't walk away from Tap Out until they know they're sure. And even if the X*Crown stands for everything they hate, even if they should throw every one of the belts off a cliff; if they win it it will be their duty to defend it. And over a week of wasted time aside, they're going to do everything they can to win it.
Most of their family and friends stopped asking for a response after the first day. Their messages only let Sam know they were there for them, not worried or pressuring. Sam didn't care.
All that mattered was that she was gone. They were supposed to be strong, like her. No matter what happened, no matter how bad, they were supposed to be strong. But all their strength died with her.
Mason must have thought their mother was all that stood between Sam and the darkness. The darkness - a cold and emotionless pursuit of progress - began when Sam had had enough of the pain, of not being by their mother's side, of being scared. They stopped caring about her. They stopped thinking altogether. That silence allowed room for an almost inhuman power to grow. When their mother saved them from the darkness, Mason was the only one of Sam's cult to miss that power. At some point Ty followed. Mason seemed to want to do things the right way at first, pressuring everyone to keep on grinding while letting Sam be themselves. But most of the group were too weak, too human. He needed Sam's power of influence. Sam didn't realize how far he would go to get it.
But despite all the pain, the darkness is nowhere to be seen. They couldn't stop thinking about their mother if they tried.
If they hadn't been chosen to compete for the X*Crown, maybe Mason and Ty would have cooled down over time. Or maybe the police would have caught them for their previous crimes before they struck. But with X*Crown shots being so rare, they were forced to act now. It would bring them so much power, speed things up enough to save years of time. Sam was supposed to get all their power back: to be able to tap into every inch of their physical strength, to regain that sixth sense, to have the ability and the ruthlessness to brainwash or crush anyone that stood in their path. Before, during the darkness, they fought fairly bell to bell, but with eyes set on the future. The X*Crown was the endgame. But as they are now... Sam is completely useless to them.
. . .
Sam opens their eyes and finds themselves in bed. They had another dream about their mom. Instead of letting it fade they can't help but cling on to it again, knowing how much it will hurt. They lie there for almost an hour. Their thoughts slowly give way to a cold silence.
Something tells them to check their phone. It's Friday the 28th. Two days until Night of Champions. They had no intention of being there. Maybe no intention of wrestling ever again. They haven't done any preparation since Overheated so would have no chance of winning anyway... but they open their conversation with Tap Out. It's an endless list of text, growing increasingly urgent, with no reply from Sam. They stare at the screen for a moment, not really reading the messages. They type “I'm fine. I'll be there.”, then send it.
They put their phone down then curl up as if to go back to sleep, immediately regretting it. They cringe thinking of the work they're going to have to do, not in the mood for it at all. They don't even want to think about the night itself. The thought of wrestling makes them want to throw up. They hate it. They know their mom would hate it too. She's always been on their side. It might have been their passion once, but now it disgusts them. They're only going to do this because it's their job. Tap Out are expecting them to wrestle. They're expecting them to be at their best and attempt to bring them the X*Crown. And the XHF, the fans, the Central Savings Bank: they all expect them to be there too. They've never backed out of a match before. As much as they hate wrestling... just one more job to do, then they'll be free.
Five minutes later they drag themselves out of bed. Before they get going they decide to reply to the last messages from their parents in Houston and Joey, belated as usual. After Sam first got back in touch with them on Tuesday, they didn't really need to worry anymore so they can handle a late reply. They type a few cursory replies, fill them in on their new plans, then start looking for the nearest gym.
Before leaving they get a couple of calls and a bunch of texts from Tap Out and XHF but they just ignore them. They've already got what they need. Everything goes well until they step into the hotel corridor. It makes them feel like crawling back into bed. They're not sure if it's laziness, or being out from under the comfort blanket of their hotel room. As horrible as their time has been in there, they miss it already.
. . .
The jog to the gym seems to help. They don't enjoy it like they used to, but they can feel themselves easing into work mode. They ignore almost everyone they see, only muttering “hi” when they really have to. In the back of their mind they still wish they were in bed. It's just a gentle jog, but their legs start aching before they get there so they walk the rest of the way.
Once inside they head straight for the cafeteria. They're not ready for this, physically or mentally. Even after refueling and letting their legs recover, they stay seated. It would be so easy to give up and go back to the hotel. Tap Out wouldn't blame them. They're not even sure why they're doing this. They definitely don't care about the X*Crown, and why should a bunch of wrestling promoters matter to them? Maybe it's their fellow wrestlers at Tap Out, who were passed over and would have loved this chance, whose careers will benefit if the X*Crown comes to Vegas. No, they don't care. But... they have to do it anyway. It's their job.
You can't run from your job. When someone is relying on you, you don't let them down. That's what they've always believed, and they're not going to stop now. They want to, but they can't. When this is all over, maybe they'll sever all of their ties so that nobody relies on them again. But it's too late to back out of this fight.
They take a deep breath and stand up. Their head begins to clear, they know what they have to do. Out of the cafeteria, they find a punching bag hanging by a chain on a black frame. They hit it with a forearm.
Sam: Ow...
Their face screws up in pain as the heavy bag doesn't give. But they simply shake the pain out of their arm, not faltering. They land a few lighter blows, warming up and making sure they have the technique. Then slowly they begin hitting harder and harder. They fight through the pain for almost a minute, the bag budging more and more, but then they have to stop.
They've lost so much weight and muscle since Overheated: they're too vulnerable. If they'd started training on Wednesday, or even yesterday, that extra time would have helped so much. They'll just have to make the most of the time they've got and hope it's enough. For now they take another break, too weak to do anything else right now, and start studying their opponents on their phone.
Over the next few hours they make slow but steady progress. A few people offer them smiles or words of encouragement, and the pop music playing also attempts to inspire, but they're deaf and blind to it all. They just strengthen their muscles with bikes and weights, and continue to pummel the bag.
On one of their breaks they order a punching bag of their own and have it delivered to their hotel. It'll be waiting for them when the gym closes.
At eight o'clock, one hour before closing, physically they feel almost like their old self. Their kicks, forearms and lariats are landing almost like they used to. They make up their mind to reply to an unanswered text from Tap Out, asking them if they want to wrestle at Tap Out 16. They're not sure if they do, but they're going to say yes. They're not going to leave them hanging another month: it's either that or quit. Although they hated having to train today, and don't really want to ever do it again after Sunday, it wasn't as bad as they thought it would be. They can't walk away from Tap Out until they know they're sure. And even if the X*Crown stands for everything they hate, even if they should throw every one of the belts off a cliff; if they win it it will be their duty to defend it. And over a week of wasted time aside, they're going to do everything they can to win it.