The Aftermath: Part 3

==========

January 19th, 2020

Boston, Massachusetts

Off Camera

==========

The sunlight streaming in through the window doesn’t immediately wake up “The Phoenix” Marie Annabelle Jones, who sleeps rather soundly in a king size bed all by herself.  Being alone is all too new for Jones.  For the longest time she had her husband, Arthur Pond, and even after his suicide Marie stuck with her identical twin sister Kimberly.  She justified it, claiming that Kimberly needed someone to look after her, but the truth of the matter is that Marie needed Kimberly just as much as Kimberly needed Marie.  And as if that wasn’t enough, Marie started dating Tommy Cook and later joined The Inner Peace Enlightenment Retreat where she would spend several days a week with her newfound Retreat friend Julianne Buchanan.  Unfortunately almost all of this has begun to come apart.  The Inner Peace Enlightenment Retreat proved to be nothing more than a sex cult.  After failing to recapture the SCW World Tag Team Championship it was Kimberly’s desire to pursue a singles career.  And her boyfriend, Tommy, isn’t living with her.  Outside of Marie’s young son, Sean Connor Jones, Marie is practically alone.  Except for the few times that Kimberly comes by for a visit.

Marie needed to be woken up but it wasn’t just the warmth of the sun’s rays that did the trick, for loud noises from downstairs also has seemingly disturbed The Phoenix’s deep slumber.  Jones turns her head and yawns deeply and loudly as she gazes upon the face of the digital clock on her nightstand.  It reads: “10:00 am”...Jones, who is typically an early bird, has slept much later than she had planned.  Today is one of those few days in which her sister Kimberly has come by for a visit.  The idea is to do some mutual training and sparring together.  Both have matches with a lot at stake; in Kimberly’s case, she is facing Bree Lancaster for the SCW United States Championship.  And for Marie, it is the opportunity to stake her claim to a Trios Opportunity as she teams with Selena Frost, Tommy Valentine, and Jay Gold.  If they win, they are all part of the Trios Tournament.  With so much on the line for both of them it was Marie’s idea for the two of them to train together for this event and she expected her sister to be enthusiastic about the idea as well.  Oddly enough, The Woman Scorned did not seem as enthusiastic as The Phoenix had hoped.  In fact, it took some arm twisting on Marie’s part to get Kimberly to agree to this.

It stands to reason that this is probably Kimberly who is making the noise at this time of day.  Marie’s son, Sean, is typically quiet.  Kimberly, on the other hand, is wildly unpredictable.  Nothing she does surprises Marie. 

The Phoenix swings her legs over the side of the bed and then pushes herself up.  She walks over to the closet and pulls it open.  She produces a pair of workout pants and and slips them on.  She finds a plain white t-shirt which she tosses on the bed.  Jones goes to a set of drawers and opens the top, finding a sports bra.  She immediately puts it on.  The redhead then retrieves her the shirt from the bed and slips the white t-shirt on over her head.  Marie exits her bedroom and turns left.  A few feet down the hall and she reaches another bedroom, and the door is standing wide open.  Jones steps inside and finds her son, Sean, sitting on the floor playing a video game on his on his X-Box.

“Sean?”

“Yeah, mom?” Sean asks without even breaking eye contact with the tv screen or the action of the game itself.  Marie cannot help but feel somewhat impressed at his ability to be so focused on the game and her at the same time.

“Have you seen your Aunt Kim?”

“Uh, yeah, she got up early this morning...”

“Thanks, sweetie.” Marie blows her son a kiss as she turns and starts to walk away but she stops when Sean calls out after her.

“Mom?”

“Yes?” The Phoenix, her maternal instincts kicking in, turns and faces her son with an inquisitive stare.

“Is Aunt Kim ok?”

This question catches The Phoenix off guard.  She tilts her head to one side and studies her son curiously.  She approaches Sean slowly and sits down next to him on the floor. “Sure.  I think so.  Why do you ask?”

“Aunt Kim seems...different…”

“How so?”

“I don’t know.” The youngster shrugs his shoulders. “She’s just been...different.  Y’know?”

The Phoenix nods her head.  She never really thought about it until Sean mentioned it just now but Kimberly has seemed different lately.  For the past several weeks she has been a different person; more stand-offish, colder, and bipolar in the sense that she would be emotionless and stoic one moment and the next moment freaking out.  Ordinarily Marie would have been very concerned for her sister’s well being but she never even noticed; at least not until her son mentioned it.

“She used to be fun…” Sean says, his voice trailing off. Marie smiles broadly as she thinks back to the fun times she and Kimberly had as Twin Magic, teaming up in Supreme Championship Wrestling and Global Championship Wrestling. Working with her sister inside of a wrestling ring is like a Jones family tradition; their mother Angelica teamed with her younger sister Kayla.  Marie also once teamed with her half-sister Jessica Lasiewicz.  It only stood to reason that Marie and Kimberly would form a team as well.  But now just as suddenly as it developed it also suddenly came to an end.  It is then that the real guilt hits her.  This entire time while she has been wallowing in self-pity over her problems and her issues, issues ranging from the Inner Peace cult and her own refusal to let go of Arthur’s death, Kimberly has been there all along, probably with problems of her own, and Marie was too caught up in her world to notice.

Looking at the concern on the face of her son Sean does bring a smile to Marie’s face.  There is hope for the next generation at least.  The Phoenix leans over and kisses her son on his forehead. “You’re a good kid, Sean.  I love you.”

“I love you too, mom.”

Jones stands up and exits the room.  She quietly shuts the door behind her.  She turns towards the stairs and slowly descends, making her way down.  As she goes farther and farther down she begins to hear the sound of her sister’s voice.  Kimberly is talking...to herself?  That’s odd.  But then again, nothing about her identical twin sister has ever truly been normal.  When she makes it to the bottom she follows the sound of her sister’s voice…

“We don’t need her!”

“Shut up!  She is my sister!”

“But she ruined you!”

Marie is now thoroughly confused.  Both voices are Kimberly’s but one seems slightly...different. Kimberly is arguing with herself, but why?  Is this some sort of game?  Were it anyone else, Marie would be very concerned about her mental state but then again, this is Kimberly.  Has she ever had a clean bill of mental health?

“We both have matches at Day of Infamy!”

“This is true.  It does make sense for you to practice together.  Just understand where your loyalties lie.”

“My loyalties lie with my family.”

“Your family does not accept you, child.  Only I do.”

The Phoenix furrows her brow in confusion.  She stands just outside of the living room and it is in the living room where this argument is taking place.  It is in the living room where Kimberly is arguing with herself for some ungodly reason.  Instead of sticking around for more of this craziness from her sister, Marie decides to confront her about it.  The Phoenix enters the living room and finds that Kimberly has her back turned towards her.

“Kimberly?  Who are you talking to?”

“Huh?  Marie?” Kimberly is taken by complete surprise and it shows as she turns around and shock is written across her face.  That shock is replaced by fear. “Marie!  Run!”

“Run?  From wha…” Marie’s eyes grow wide as she just now notices that her twin is holding a human skull in her hands “...what the hell is that?”

Just then Kim’s face goes blank.  Her eyes roll back into her head and for a moment Marie believes she is about to faint.  Jones rushes over just in time to catch her sister from falling.  Kimberly then looks up at Marie with pure hatred in her eyes.

“DIE!”

Before Marie can react Kimberly shoves her off and then decks her with a hard right hand that sends Marie tumbling to the floor.  Marie pushes herself up but is taken right back down by an enraged Kimberly who lifts her up and charges her back first into the nearest wall.  From there Williams spins her around and drops her to the floor.  Kimberly mounts her twin and wraps both hands around her throat and begins to choke her.

“You ruined her!”

“Ruined...ack...ruined who?” Marie is having trouble breathing, let alone forming any words, but she does barely manage to get those words out.

“You ruined Kimberly!” Kimberly exclaims loudly and angrily.  Marie struggles to breath as her enraged and psychotic twin sister begins to choke the life out of her.  Jones isn’t sure what to do until she spots the skull that Kimberly was holding.  She reaches out for it.  She is close...so close...and finally The Phoenix snatches the skull and smacks Kim in the side of the head with it.  The force of the impact knocks Kimberly off.  Marie realizes that she has bought herself a little time and she uses it to push herself back up.  By then, however, the enraged Kimberly is also up and charges.  Jones sees her coming just in time, so she sidesteps her and Kimberly runs into a table holding a lamp and tumbles over the top of it and to the floor below.

“What on earth is wrong with you, Kimberly?!” Marie exclaims angrily as she watches Kimberly pull herself back up to her feet.  The Phoenix prepares herself, bracing for another attack from her twin sister.

“You ruined her!  You…” Kimberly is still enraged but only for a moment.  Her face glazes over and her eyes roll back into her head.  Just then Kimberly shakes her head as she gazes back at Marie, this time a look of shock is upon her face. “...Marie!  Uh…” The Woman Scorned shakes her head “...you should leave.  Now.”

“No.” Marie folds her arms over her chest and stands her ground.

“I am not sure how much longer I can control myself.  Take Sean and get out of here.”

The mention of her son immediately makes The Phoenix consider taking Kimberly’s advice and leaving.  Sean is precious to her and doesn’t want harm to come to him.  But Sean is Kim’s nephew, surely she wouldn’t do anything to him.  But then again, why would she freak out and attack her?  None of this makes any sense but Marie does eventually decide to stand her ground.  She shakes her head.

“I am not leaving, at least not until I get some answers out of you.”

“LEAVE!” Kimberly shouts angrily.  Her face contorts, it looks as if she straining, stressing even. “If you care for your son then leave!  I don’t know how long I can contain this!”

Jones shakes her head, stubbornly refusing to give up on her twin sister.  She approaches Kimberly who tries to back away but she ends up backing into a corner.  Marie reaches out and gently grabs Kim by the hand and squeezes tightly. “I do care about my son but I also care about you…”

“Liar!” Kimberly shouts, jerking her hand away and shaking her head vehemently. “She says you don’t care for me!”

Who the hell is she talking about?  Marie has no idea what is going through her sister’s head right now but she can tell Kimberly is frustrated, enraged, and angry.  Marie again considers packing Sean up and leaving but she still opts not to go.  She cannot leave her sister in this condition.  Marie shakes her head.

“I am not leaving until I get some answers out of you.” She points over to the sofa. “So go, sit down; we’re going to talk.”

“Why?!” Kimberly demands angrily.

“Because despite what you may think, I do care about you.”

“Fine…” Kim’s voice trails off.  She shakes her head “...but it’s your funeral.”

Marie steps aside and watches cautiously as her identical twin sister makes her way across the living room, stepping over the fallen table and lamp, and finally over to the sofa.  Kimberly sits down in the center and then Marie approaches slowly and carefully.  Jones sits down next to her, to Kim’s right.  Marie places a comforting, gentle hand on her sister’s knee.

“I spoke to Sean this morning.  He is worried about you, Kim, and so am I.”

“Bullshit.” Kimberly spits out. “You never noticed anything was wrong.  You never do.”

“Ok, maybe I didn’t notice before, maybe I didn’t notice until Sean pointed it out.  But I do notice it now.  Especially after all of this…” The Phoenix motions to the wreck caused by Kimberly’s unprovoked attack.  The Woman Scorned doesn’t seem bothered at all.  In fact, she just shrugs her shoulders.

“So what?  You are talking to the person who once kidnapped you.  You are talking to the person who tried to replace you.  You are talking to the person who tried to staple Abigail Lindsey, Bree Lancaster, and pretty much everyone else in SCW.  You should expect anything from Crazy Kim.”

“You’re not crazy.”

“What do you call of this?  Sanity?” Venom drips from Kimberly’s voice. “And quit acting like you care because you don’t!”

Yet again Marie is accused of not caring about her identical twin sister.  This is very unusual and doesn’t sit well with The Phoenix.  Jones then casts a gaze over to her left and notices the skull still lying on the floor.  She looks back over at Kim. “Is that a real human skull?”

“Yes.”

“Whose skull is it?”

“Emma’s.”

Marie knows of Emma.  Emma Storm is the woman who is largely responsible for Marie and Kimberly being separated at birth.  Emma Storm is the one most responsible for Kimberly being as unstable and dangerous as she is.  Emma hated the Jones family and raised Kimberly, eventually training her to be a weapon against them all.  Emma hadn’t been seen from or heard from in a long time, thus Marie isn’t surprised to find out that she is dead, nor would it surprise her to find out that Kimberly murdered her.  Still, it is just a suspicion that Marie must first confirm.

“How is it that you have her skull?”

“I killed her.” Kimberly says through gritted teeth as tears form in her eyes. “I had her tied up and I beat her again and again until she died.  She died at my bare hands, Marie.  But she’s not gone…” The Woman Scorned points to her head “...she’s still here.  She’s always been here.”

“Kimberly…Emma is gone…”

“Maybe she is?  Maybe she isn’t?” Kimberly shrugs her shoulders, still sobbing softly but looking indifferently. “But it doesn’t matter does it?  It doesn’t matter because she is still here.” Again Kimberly points at her head.

“So what you’re saying is that you’re hearing voices in your head?”

“That or there’s an actual fucking ghost possessing me!” Kimberly snaps angrily at her twin sister. “Which sounds more logical to you right now?  Which makes me less crazy because right now I feel pretty fucking insane!  I feel like I’m losing my damn mind Marie!”

“Listen to me, Kim.  First of all, you are not crazy.”

“I feel pretty damn crazy right now!”

“You may feel that way and maybe that is what Emma wanted you to be, a crazy psychotic person to hurt this family, but she failed.  She failed because YOU made such awesome progress.  You worked hard and healed yourself.”

“You’re right, I did heal myself.” Kimberly nods her head and then points an accusatory finger at Marie. “Unlike you.  You needed help...from the church, from the family, and finally from a fucking self help group that turned out to be a sex cult...and after all of that you still haven’t been able to help yourself.  You still have your own problems that you haven’t been able to move on from and you sit here and tell me to forget about it and move on?” She shakes her head. “You’re such a hypocrite.”

“Kimberly, listen…”

“NO YOU LISTEN!” Kimberly shouts angrily. “I was there for you when you decided to throw side with Syren and Katya and her friends.  I knew they were bad news.  I knew they were nothing but con artists because I was raised by a fucking con artist and if there is one thing I know better than anyone else is a fucking con artist.  But I stuck by your side.  I stayed loyal to you.  I wanted to start a singles career of my own for a long time but you needed a tag team partner so that you could go after the tag titles.  The tag titles was one of three championships missing before you could become Supreme Champion in SCW.  So I set my singles aspirations aside so that you could achieve your goals.  I remained loyal to you, Marie.  The one and only time I ever spoke out against you was when you joined that Inner Peace crap and you told me to get lost.  So do not lecture me, Marie!  You have no room to stand!”

Marie bows her head in shame.  A great deal of what her twin sister has just said is correct.  But she is far from done.  Kimberly points over at the skull. “Emma separated us at birth and yeah, manipulation may have played a role, but the fact is our beloved mother gave me to her.  And despite Angelica knowing full well who I was, she still denied it even after I came back into her life.  It took hard evidence before she would admit that yes, I was her daughter, and even to this day she never fully accepted me.  Our half-sisters, Jessica and Kelly, they don’t accept me.  I’m not even sure you fully accept me but at least…” she sighs deeply “...at least you tried.”

Even more good points.  Most would argue that a distrust of Kimberly is to be expected, considering what she has done in the past.  Still, she is family.  Should she not be accepted?  Marie then takes initiative and embraces Kimberly in a tight hug.

“Look at me!” They break the embrace and Kimberly gazes into Marie’s eyes, which are now flooded with tears. “I love you, you idiot!  I would do anything for you!  But you’re right...maybe I have been too selfish, too caught up in my own world and my own problems.  You have done a great deal for me, and while I do appreciate that, I have to admit that I have not done nearly as much for you.  This has been a very unfair, one-sided relationship and for that, I apologize.”

“It’s nice hearing you admit that but…” Kimberly’s voice trails off as she struggles with her words “...but it’s still just words.”

“I know.  What mom did, manipulation from Emma or not, was still wrong.  And take my word for it because I spoke to her a few weeks ago, she does feel guilty about everything she has done and if there was any way to make it right she would do it.”

“Maybe if she treated me like a daughter...maybe if Jessica and Kelly treated me as sisters...but all of you treat me as Crazy Kim.  All of you treat me as a weapon that you can call upon if you need me.  Stabby, stabby, right?  You’re no better than Emma, because that’s all she wanted.  She just wanted a weapon to use against this family.”

“It’s a matter of trust, Kim.  They don’t trust you.  But trust can’t just be given.  Trust is earned.”

“Not this crap again!” Kimberly shouts, rolling her eyes. “I’ve heard all of this before!  I know I’ve done terrible things!  I know why they don’t trust me!  I know…”

“I’m not talking about you, you idiot!” Marie shouts, shouting over her sister. “I’m talking about me!”

“What?!” Kimberly is taken surprise by this response.  Marie nods her head.

“I can’t speak for Jessica and Kelly, or even for mom, but I can speak for myself when I say that I am deeply sorry for taking advantage of you in our relationship.  I am sorry for taking you for granted.  And I am sorry for not caring about you as much as I should.  And Kim, I am going to bust my ass from here on out to hopefully earn your forgiveness and earn your trust, because I do not want a weapon or a tag team partner.  I want a sister.  I want my best friend back.”

Marie stares hopefully into her twin sister’s eyes.  Eventually Kim breaks down into tears and embraces Marie in a tight hug. “I...I want that too…!”

“And you know what friends do?  Do you know what sisters do?” Marie asks as Kimberly looks up at her sister with tear filled eyes. “They help each other.  And I am going to help you through whatever issues you have right now, I will do whatever I can to make those voices go away, if you help me through my issues.  Deal?”

Kimberly smiles and nods her head. “Deal.”

==========

January 25th, 2020

Chicago, Illinois

On Camera

==========

The cityscape was a jumble of shapes, like a child had cast blocks down randomly and then swept them so close together they touched. There were rectangles, domes and mini-castles. There were spires, weather vanes and satellite dishes. Between the dwellings and businesses the roads were so narrow that they frequently became blocked by trucks brining in wares. These juggernauts were designed for highways and the metropolis.  Between the chaotic buildings ran a network of paths wide enough for two skinny people to pass. This city is Chicago and it is a living machine spread over once green land like a microchip grossly enlarged. The roads run in their predictable grid pattern and the lights of the stores, restaurants and places of vice shine neon into the night.

We then cut to the outside of a hotel room, specifically a balcony.  The balcony grew from the walls of the house as generous arms from a host, or perhaps those of a mother to cradle her infant child. The metal had a patina of ocean greens and blues, or perhaps it was more the hues of a mossy forest floor in softened early light, yet either way it was beautiful.  It isn’t long until a lovely femine figure steps out onto the balcony.  The camera zooms in and we see that this is none other than “The Phoenix” Marie Annabelle Jones.  The redheaded Boston native is wearing a knee length black skirt, black stockings, and black patent leather high heeled pumps with an open toe.  She is wearing a red sweater and her signature black leather jacket.  Her long red hair hangs unrestrained to below her shoulders.

“So here we are in Chicago, just one day away from Day of Infamy.  Just one more day until I get the opportunity to make my own luck with the Trios Buy In.  And that’s what gets me to thinking about the people of this fine city.  Chicago is a place where the competitive spirit is alive and well.  You have World Series Champions Chicago Cubs, Super Bowl Champion Chicago Bears, and NBA Champion Chicago Bulls.  The Monsters of the Midway, Super Bowl Shuffle, Michael Jordan, all of it came from right here from a city that knows all about success in the world of sports.  But that’s not all…” Jones shakes her head “...you see, with any competitive environment you have to take the good with the bad.  Hell, with all aspects of life you have to go in expecting that there will be good days and bad days, there will be wins and there will be losses, because let’s be honest, you cannot win them all.  And I know that too.  I mean, look back at my history, I already have had quite a successful wrestling career with seven world championships to my name.  I am two championship wins away from the coveted Supreme Championship in SCW.  But I also understand that I have had my bad days.  Wrestling, like life in general, is a roller coaster of good times and bad times, coupled with good decisions and bad mistakes.  What makes you either a stronger, better, tougher person or just another weak coward is whether you decide to press on, fight on, or if you choose to make excuses.”

The Phoenix narrows her eyes in an intense gaze at the camera, as if glaring deep into the very soul of the viewer. “I have chosen to fight on!  I do not choose to live in the past, to constantly live in my glory days, that is why I have only just now even mentioned my seven previous world title wins.  That is the first time I ever mentioned them since signing with SCW years ago.  I never brought it up because I live for the here and the now while also preparing for the future.  All that matters in SCW is what I have done in SCW and what I have done is win the SCW Television Championship, United States Championship, and World Tag Team Championship.  My career in SCW has been very successful.”

Jones shakes her head. “But I am not done and if you think I am satisfied then you are dead wrong.  I know that with hard work and dedication to my craft that I can do so much more in this great company and I know that I can become SCW Adrenaline Champion and that I can maybe even become SCW World Champion, my eighth world title overall and completing my goal of becoming Supreme Champion.  But I am not going to live in the past and I am definitely finished making excuses for why I fail.  I will leave the excuse making for the experts at excuse making, people like Gavin Taylor who are so good at failing that they become masters at the art of making excuses for each and every failure.  That is why I am better than someone like Gavin Taylor.  I am better than him in every way imaginable because I will not only take ownership of my past mistakes but I will also learn from them and use those lessons, those experiences, to improve myself as a competitor, so that going forward I will not have to worry about making excuses…”

“...because I will have won…” a confident smirk forms upon her lovely face.

“The Day of Infamy Trios Buy In is a great concept because it eliminates the whole idea of making excuses.  Four teams of four in two eight person tag matches, the two winning teams guaranteeing themselves a spot in the 2020 Trios Tournament and from there a battle to determine seeding for a draft.  Unlike previous Trios Tournaments, where LUCK played a huge role in the tournament outcome, this time luck is taken out of the equation almost entirely.  If I want a guaranteed spot in the Trios Tournament then I need to do my part to help Selena Frost, Tommy Valentine, and Jay Gold get the job done for our team.  And if I want to get a top draft choice and put together an absolutely unbeatable Trios Team then I need to go on and defeat those same three individuals to ensure my top seeding position.  Whereas before in previous years LUCK determined my Trios opportunity, this year I determine my own Trios opportunity.  And if my team loses, it isn’t on Selena, Valentine, or Jay…”

Her voice trails off.  Marie pats herself on the chest “...it is all on me.  It falls upon my shoulders to fight and claw with every last breath I have in my body to get the job done, and never to settle, never to be content, and damn sure never to let anyone carry me over the finish line.” She shakes her head defiantly.

“I will do my part, I will carry my load, and if I will even carry the whole damn team if I have to, because this year, 2020, it is going to be my year, the year of The Phoenix, and I am going to start with Day of Infamy, go on to win Trios with an absolutely unbeatable Trios Team that I put together, and then complete my goal of becoming Supreme Champion.  Impossible dream, you say?  I say nothing is impossible if you put your mind to it.  If you say it is too lofty a goal then I say you are just trying to make excuses and I am done making excuses.  I am setting my sights to the highest of the highs, the biggest goals, and if you don’t believe that I can get the job done then watch me.  Watch me when I get the job done at Day of Infamy and then eat your words when I go on to victory at the Trios Tournament, eat your words and know that with the Trios Contract I can accomplish my goal in one...single...night…”