No Longer Content

==========

Off Camera

==========

This past Breakdown was certainly a pivotal event for Marie Annabelle Jones.  Most notable is the fact that she defeated Cassidy Carter to become the next challenger to the SCW Television Championship.  This will be Marie’s chance to become a two time SCW Television Champion and to once again get gold around her waist.  To do so, she will have quite the challenge in the form of yet another former World Champion Alexis Quinne to conquer.   Marie is certainly up to the challenge.   She has battled and beaten former world champions in the past.  She has built up enough self-confidence that this is a challenge she can overcome.

Earning her Television Title opportunity isn’t the only thing that occurred on Breakdown.  If it were, perhaps Breakdown wouldn’t have been so “pivotal” after all for The Crown Jewel of Professional Wrestling.  Something else happened that made Breakdown even more pivotal for Jones.

His name was Blake Mason.

Marie challenged Blake to a match at Apocalypse.  For her, it’s just about career advancement and showing the SCW universe what this sport should be all about.  Both Marie and Blake have been on quite the roll lately, both are arguably deserving of title opportunities, and a match between the two is just the kind of match that needs to happen to see who will get to be elevated to the next level.  For far too long she has observed people who, in her mind, do not deserve opportunities get all of the opportunities while she’s had to bust her ass, fight and claw, all for seemingly nothing.  But this match is the type of match no one can ignore. Two top level, top caliber athletes on the top of their game.  One will earn the win and thus earn the next step up.  It’s what Marie feels is fair and what should happen in SCW.

Yet there is an awkwardness to it all.  Marie and Blake had a brief affair not too long ago.  For Jones it was just about living on the edge.  It was about doing something she knew was wrong just for the hell of it.  It was her way of privately protesting the way SCW and, in a way, society as a whole rewarded bad behavior.  If those who acted like wild animals and degenerates got all the praise and spotlight, then she would act out as well.

What she did not take time to consider was how it would impact her husband, Arthur Pond.  When he found out what had happened he was horrified and immediately confronted Blake.  He convinced him not to leave Marie and perhaps that was the miracle of the whole affair; that Arthur chose not to leave Marie.  The marriage is intact but it is on rock ground as Marie realizes that she must now fight to earn his trust once again.

Thus it would stand to question, why would she intentionally put herself into a situation where she must face Blake Mason at Apocalypse, knowing her husband Arthur will be none too pleased that she issued the challenge?

Blake had that same question cross his mind and had already approached Marie to interrogate her.  Now Jones has returned to her hotel room and is ready to confront the man who will have the most questions…

…her husband, Arthur Pond.

The bed was king-sized with pure white, Egyptian cotton sheets.  There was a solid oak desk for writing or other work purposes, a thirty-six-inch TV with video and DVD, a sprawling leather sofa, and, on the other side of the floor-to-ceiling windows was his own private terrace.   The bathroom included a shower and a bath, big enough for a football team and a Jacuzzi.  Everything in marble and handcrafted tiles.

It’s a suite, a luxury suite, and Marie isn’t used to living this kind of lifestyle but it’s all part of her husband’s lifestyle change.  Marie had intentionally chosen not to flaunt the wealth that her family has built up.  But now Arthur has decided to use that wealth.  Marie believes he is trying to give her the kind of life that Blake could have given her.

“Arthur?”

Marie steps from the doorway into the living area of the suite.  She finds no one there except her son, Sean Connor Jones, on the floor reading a comic book.  She sets her gym bag down and then approaches Sean and kneels down next to him.

“Hi, buddy.  Isn’t it past your bed time?”

“Yeah.  I just want to finish this…” He motions to the comic.  Marie nods her head in agreement.

“Fine, but get to right to bed after. Now where’s Arthur?”

“He went to bed.”

“Thanks sweetie.”

She doesn’t believe he is actually asleep.  Arthur may not have traveled with her to Breakdown tonight but she is almost certain that he watched the proceedings.  He probably knows already about the match set between Blake and Marie.  And he’s probably fuming.  This is something she’ll have to deal with.

Marie kisses Sean on the head.  She stands up and walks into the bedroom area where she finds her husband exactly where Sean had said she’d find him; in bed.  The thing is, he is not asleep at all.  He is sitting up in bed, wide awake, with his arms folded over his chest staring a hole through Marie.

“Welcome back, Marie.” He says rather coldly. “I take it Breakdown was enjoyable for you.”

“It was, you should’ve been there.  I dropped that degenerate bimbo Cassidy Carter on her head and earned a Television Title shot in the process.  Now if I can just do that one more time, only this time to Alexis Quinne, then I will be a two time SCW Television Champion.”

“Sounds good,” Arthur nods his head “and maybe I should start going with you to Breakdown more often.”

“You know you’re always invited.” Marie walks over to the king sized bed and sits down. “It isn’t my fault you never attend.”

“I never attended because I trusted that you could handle your own business, so I stayed out of it.” He snaps his fingers. “Oh but there’s that word again!  Trust…”

He points a finger at Marie “…and just when I think you’re getting closer to earning my trust back, you go and pull some stupid shit like this.”

Marie takes in a deep breath and then lets it out in the form of a big sigh. “I take it you heard about the match between Blake and I at Apocalypse.”

“You damn right I heard about it!” He exclaims, his voice getting louder. Marie waves her hands to shush him, pointing out the door towards the living area of the suite.

“Hush, Arthur!  Sean is just outside!”

“Whatever…” he shakes his head “…I just want to know who put you up to it?  Was it Mr. D?  I can imagine that jerk, seeking nothing but pure ratings, would put you against him!”

“Now you’re being silly.  If he knew about the affair you might have a good argument but Mr. D has no idea that I had an affair with Blake.”

“So you mean this was all your idea?”

“It was all my idea, Arthur.” She nods her head.

“Well then answer this question….why the hell would you put yourself in a situation where you are around him?!”

“Calm down, Arthur…let me explain…”

“There are no explanations necessary!” He shouts angrily. “You have betrayed my trust once by having an affair with that jackass and now you’re openly flaunting it by asking for this match!”

“Arthur!” Marie exclaims. “Quiet down!  Sean is outside!”

“I don’t care!”

He rears back and slaps Marie across the face.  Marie rubs the stinging out of her cheek and stares shockingly, wide-eyed at Arthur.  Arthur, for his part, seems even more shocked and frightened than Marie herself.  It shows as he immediately rolls out of bed and backs away.

“Marie, I…” he shakes his head “…I’m sorry…”

“It’s ok, Arthur.”

She gets up out of bed and approaches him but he backs away from her.  He stops to bend down to pick up a t-shirt on the floor on his way.  He quickly slips the  t-shirt on.

“Stay away…”

“Arthur, please…” tears are forming in her eyes.

Arthur shakes his head as he stops to pick up exercise shorts and puts them on next.

“Stay away!”

Arthur bolts out of the bedroom door.  Marie chases after him but she manages to get into the living area in time to see him walking out of the door.

“Mom?” Marie turns and looks down at her son Sean, who observed the whole thing. “Is everything ok?”

“I’m not sure, sweetie.  I’m honestly not sure.”

==========

30 Minutes Later

Off Camera

==========

Marie knows what it is like to be in an abusive relationship.  It wasn’t too long ago that her ex-boyfriend, Damian Daniel Toole, resurfaced in an attempt to woo her away from Arthur.  Marie and Toole once were an item but he was abusive, both physically and emotionally.  She worked up the courage and self-confidence to break away from that relationship and send him packing.  She never expected to get hit by her loving husband Arthur, though.

Arthur had always been seemingly an exact contrast of Toole.  Where Toole was mean, Arthur was loving.  When Toole would be emotionally hateful, Arthur would be caring and compassionate.  Arthur was everything Marie wanted in a husband.  What happened tonight when Arthur struck her, that was something she never expected.

Did the incident shake her up?  Certainly.  But Marie realizes that she cannot just leave it be. Her marriage is still on the line and she has to fight to keep it alive.  She gave Arthur some time before getting dressed and heading downstairs to the hotel lobby.

The dinging sound signals the arrival of the elevator.  The elevator doors slide open and Jones steps out of the elevator and walks over to the hotel lobby.  The floor of the lobby was tiled in fine marble, which made every step echo. A chandelier made rainbow colors dance across the luxurious lobby. Embroidered silk sofas surrounded a large, flat-screen television. The twin doors that led into the lobby were a pristine white with golden handles. The desk was made of amber-colored wood and a green granite top. Exquisite paintings hung from the rich, red walls. Even the door hinges were engraved with swirls and elegant designs. The domed ceiling rose at least 100 feet high.

Jones approaches the desk and gets the clerk’s attention.  The clerk, a young man with brown hair, smiles pleasantly.

“May I help you?”

“Yes, I’m worried about my husband.  Did he come down here by chance in the last thirty minutes or so?  If so, where did he go?”

“Only one man has been down here this late in the evening.” He points to one of the sofas and sure enough, Marie spots Arthur sitting down with his head propped up in his hands. “He’s right there, ma’am.”

“Thank you, very much.”

Marie immediately makes a bee-line for the sofa where her husband Arthur sits.  She gently places a hand on his back.  This startles him ever so slightly, causing him to look up at her. The fear that was on his face has been replaced by guilt.

“Is it ok if I sit down?”

“Uh, sure…I think so…”

Arthur moves over a little to allow Marie room to sit down.  She sits down next to him.

“You scared me, Arthur.”

“Sorry about that, Marie.  I didn’t mean to hit you.  It just…”

“Well being hit is one thing, you running away and with that look on your face, I don’t see that look very often.  It scared me, babe, on a whole lot of levels.” Tears once more form in her eyes. “I thought I had lost you.”

“I’m sorry for scaring you, Marie, but I had to remove myself from the situation for a little while.” He puts his hand on top of hers and gazes deep into her eyes. “Have I told you much about my parents?”

“You told me they are divorced.”

“That’s not all.  My father was also abusive towards my mother and me.  When I struck you all of those memories came rushing back to me, the memories of how dad beat me, how he beat mom, and then of course I remembered Damian Toole…”

“Don’t bring his name into this.” She shakes her head.  “You are nothing like him.”

“Maybe not but don’t I have the capability of becoming like him?  I was raised in that environment, Marie.  The moment I struck you I saw myself becoming like him, or worse yet becoming like my father.”

He kisses her on her cheek. “I had to get out of there.  I don’t want to become like my father and I don’t want our marriage to end like my parents’ marriage did.”

“I get it, babe.  Our marriage is on rocky ground right now.  But we can salvage this.  We can get through this and we’ll be stronger than ever if we do.  But we have to talk through our issues.  That means no secrets, full transparency. And that starts with me.”

She sighs deeply. “Yes, I did ask for that match against Blake.  But it wasn’t for the reasons you think.”

“Then why?  Blake is the source of all of our problems right now, so why on earth would you put yourself in a situation where you would be around him?”

“We work for the same company, Arthur.” She chuckles.  “There is literally no way around it.  We were going to get booked against each other eventually, if I didn’t issue the challenge then sometime down the road Mr. D would have booked the match himself.  And you still wouldn’t have been happy, would you?”

“Doubtful.” He chuckles lightly and shakes his head.

“Is this an awkward situation?  Damn right it is. But it is a situation that Blake and I will have to deal with eventually seeing as we are wrestling for the same promotion.  So may as well get it out of the way now.  And there’s a professional reason to get it out of the way now rather than wait until later.”

“What’s that?”

“Blake is on a major roll right now.  So am I, in terms of winning big matches.  Hell, in a week’s time I could win my second SCW Television Championship.  Blake was just offered a shot at the US Title and he turned it down.  Blake and I are both at the top of our game right now and this is the perfect opportunity for two individuals who deserve an opportunity to earn it the right way.  You’ve heard me complain again and again about people like Dylan Howell and Cassidy Carter and so many other wastes of talent  getting opportunities that they do not deserve.  This is something our sport needs.  Two great athletes, two professionals, fighting to take the next step forward in their career.”

There is a pause as Arthur takes in Marie’s words.  She isn’t quite certain how he’ll react but she steels herself, preparing for the worst.  Finally…

“Do you trust Blake to be a professional?”

“I do, but let me ask you this; do you trust me to beat the ever loving crap out of him if he doesn’t?”

Arthur can’t help himself as he laughs out loud. “You know I do, babe. You’ve been through hell in your life and come out like an angel.  If anyone can do this, it’s you.”

“So you’re ok with me facing Blake at Apocalypse?”

“I’m not going to lie, I will probably never be fully ok with you being around him.  But I absolutely trust you, Marie.”

“Do you…” she reaches up and wipes a tear from her eye “…do you mean that?”

“Yes, I mean that.” He leans over and the two share a passionate kiss. “Just don’t let me down.”

“I promise, Arthur.  I will never let you down again.”

==========

On Camera

==========

Desire and determination are two words that should define great athletes; a desire to be the best and the determination to achieve your goal.  Every great athlete in SCW has those two qualities.  Selena Frost and Kennedy Street both have those qualities. Whether you like them or not, athletes like Regan, Bree, and Sienna all have those qualities as well.  No matter what you may think of them, you cannot question their desire and you damn sure cannot question their determination to do whatever it takes to achieve their goal.  They are not complacent to just sit around and be another pretty face in the crowd.  They are not content with causing chaos or being some outlandish degenerate just to get attention and spotlight.

Complacency is a problem within this sport and especially within Supreme Championship Wrestling. Ace Marshall and Cassidy Carter are content with just being the proverbial party animals of SCW.  They are complacent and happy with their role, thus why they have done little more than annoy people in recent months rather than do anything of any worth.  Giovanni Aries is content with his role as the resident lunatic of SCW, with his ranting and raving about Lizard people.  His complacency cost him the World Championship at Rise To Greatness.

I was complacent once.  I was complacent and content with my role as the good girl, the hero, the person who would just wait patiently until their time came.  That’s what everyone kept telling me…

“Be patient, Marie.  Your time is coming.”

“Keep fighting, don’t give up, your time is coming.”

That’s when I realized that I was complacent.  I was content to wait until my time came.  Then I got tired of trying to sift through the bullshit.  I got tired of people like Dylan Howell being rewarded for bad behavior.  I got tired of Christy Matthews being rewarded for her amazing ability to complain about the stresses of being a single mother.  I was being complacent, meanwhile everyone else was passing me by and receiving the title opportunities I deserved.

So I spoke out.  I told the world how things ought to work around here.  But those were just words and while words are awesome and necessary, words are not enough to make real change.  People like Mr. D or other suits on the board of directors could easily ignore someone like me, complacent little Marie Jones.

So I had to quit being complacent.  I had to get up off of my ass and start kicking some ass.  Konrad Raab, another individual complacent and content with his current role, got his head planted into the mat with an Ave Maria.  Cassidy Carter was next; you remember her, right?  The degenerate who is complacent in her role as a trouble maker?  She got her head driven into the mat with an Ave Maria.

Now I have an opportunity to become a two time SCW Television Champion.

Alexis Quinne beat Aaorn Blackbourne.  You’d think that someone who just won the title, not just on any stage but the grandest stage, Rise To Greatness, would use that momentum, to ride the wave of success that he built up.

Yet it wasn’t long after Rise To Greatness when he dropped the belt to Quinne.  And that’s no insult to Aaron but more so praise for Quinne.  Alexis Quinne is a former SCW World Champion, after all.  She’s been to the top of the mountain.  She’s been the best.

That’s right, Quinne.  You’ve been to the promised land where so many current top level draws like Giovanni Aries, Kennedy Street, Alistaire Alloco, and others are fighting to reach.  You have been to the place where Sienna Swann currently stands.  You have been the best.

While most would see that as nothing but positive, nothing but praise, I see that as potentially deadly for one’s career.  What happened to you after your World Championship run, Alexis?  Did you stay right there in the thick of the hunt?

You fell right of the radar screen.  You’re no longer a blip.  You’re an afterthought in the title picture.  Granted you are now SCW Television Champion and while that is nothing to sneeze at, it does make me wonder if you have become complacent.

Are you content with your new role in SCW as a mid-card, or upper mid-card level athlete who will often challenge for the Television, United States, or Adrenaline titles but rarely, if ever, will you even get anywhere close to returning  to the top of the mountain?

I can’t answer that question.  Only you can answer that question whenever you look at yourself in the mirror. But I can tell you one thing right now and that’s the fact that I am not content, I am not complacent.  I am ready to break through.  I have beaten world champions Ace Marshall and Christy Matthews.  Adding another former world champion, namely you, to my list of former SCW World Champions I’ve beaten only further adds credence and legitimacy to my case that I deserve to be in the world title conversation.

Adding the SCW Television Championship belt back to my collection would be more than an added bonus.  Being SCW Television Champion is NOT for the complacent and content.  That’s why it seems as if each and every worthless and pathetic so-called “athlete” to win that title doesn’t even get a successful title defense in with the rare exception of a few…

Kennedy Street successfully defended it again and again and again…

Ravyn Taylor successfully defended it again and again and again…

Notice the difference between athletes like Kennedy or Ravyn and athletes like Aaron Blackbourne, Derek Adonis, and Torsten Voigt?

The difference is complacency.  Kennedy and Ravyn were not complacent champions.  I was a complacent champion when I held it the first time, which is why I lost it quickly to Beard.  But I have since corrected myself and I am no longer the complacent good girl I once was.  I am the cutthroat Crown Jewel of Professional Wrestling and I am ready to retake the championship that I never should have lost and then as Television Champion I will show the world what it means to be a REAL champion.

You tweet all the damn time about levitate, levitate, levitate, is that right?  Well get this and get this now, Quinne….when I beat your complacent ass and take the SCW Television Championship, I will ELEVATE, ELEVATE, ELEVATE the championship to an even greater status.