Post by Gabriela Luna on Jun 24, 2018 18:33:26 GMT
Gabriela collapsed against an equipment crate, a dazed smile on her face. The war between the Pack and the Age of Gods was at the back of her mind. All she could think about was the opportunity she'd won for herself, the promise it represented...and the challenge still before her.
Her reverie was broken by the sound of one man applauding, and Gabriela looked up to see a man in a luchador's mask and street clothing walking towards her, a grin visible through the mouth of the mask. "Showing the gringas what being a true luchadora means, yeah? I knew this was the tour to fly up for."
Gabriela cracks a weary grin, pulling herself to her feet and taking the man's hand before pulling him into a hug. "Infierno. It's been a minute, güey. You flew up here for me?"
"Nah, I got some shows I been doing around the Bay Area. Just happened to be in the area and thought I'd come give you a hard time." Infierno shakes his head. "Didn't expect I'd be congratulating you like this."
"Fuck's that supposed to mean, culero?" Gabriela snaps back, narrowing her eyes. "Didn't think I could do it?"
"Nah, I knew you could. Just figured it'd be..." Infierno pauses for a moment, searching for the right word. "Louder? You're not exactly subtle."
"Point." Gabriela sighs, rubbing the bridge of her nose. "I figure I save the big loud for when I actually win the goddamn title. No use blowing it on the pregame." She cocks her head to the side. "So...you ain't here on a work visa, are you?"
"Absolutely not." Infierno shakes his head. "It's, like, sixteen hundred dollars to get a visa, and it takes too fuckin' long." He looks around with a half-grin on his face. "Why, you gonna turn me in?"
"Don't even joke about that." Gabriela shakes her head. "Nah, just remembering." She takes a step forward, gently slugging Infierno in the shoulder. "Just good to see a familiar face."
"Does this really count?" Infierno snarks at her, patting the side of his mask. Gabriela rolls her eyes at the question and Infierno flashes another crooked grin, shrugging. "Easy joke. Come on, they're gonna kick you out at some point. Might as well go get some food, enjoy ourselves for a minute."
"You buyin'?" Gabriela shoots back, beginning to walk down the hall. Infierno does a double-take as he begins to follow her, and Gabriela's expression remains impassive. "Look, tradition is tradition. You want to take me out, you gotta buy. That's the rules."
Infierno rolls his eyes. "Jesus."
"He's still in Guadalajara, what's he got to do with it?"
That one earns a return slug to Gabriela's shoulder, who reacts as if she's been shot, staggering across the hallway dramatically. Infierno shakes his head, and Gabriela chuckles, resuming her walk. "You're the big shot wrestling in America. You just won the main event of a TV program watched by millions. I saw more of your shirts in the crowd than I've sold in the last year, probably more. I had to lie to the people at the airport to get in. And you're asking mi pobre culo to buy you dinner?"
Gabriela looks over, keeping her expression steady for a moment. After a second, she breaks out into a slightly shamefaced grin. "...was worth a shot?"
Infierno looks over at Gabriela, an expression of utter disbelief readable even through the mask. He rubs the bridge of his nose, groaning, and shakes his head. "You try my patience, woman."
"I try everyone's patience. It's part of my appeal." Gabriela smirks. "At least that's what the marketing team says. Come on. Food sounds good, and the last thing I want is for the religious war to catch up to us." She takes a few more steps as Infierno watches her, trying to process everything. As she notices she's lost her companion, Gabriela groans, looking back. "And I'll buy. Cheap-ass."
Infierno perks up, walking forward again with a smile on his face. "You're the best, Gabi."
Gabriela groans, nodding. "Damn right I am." She hangs her head as the two walk down the hall and around the corner, and we fade out on the empty hallway.
Her reverie was broken by the sound of one man applauding, and Gabriela looked up to see a man in a luchador's mask and street clothing walking towards her, a grin visible through the mouth of the mask. "Showing the gringas what being a true luchadora means, yeah? I knew this was the tour to fly up for."
Gabriela cracks a weary grin, pulling herself to her feet and taking the man's hand before pulling him into a hug. "Infierno. It's been a minute, güey. You flew up here for me?"
"Nah, I got some shows I been doing around the Bay Area. Just happened to be in the area and thought I'd come give you a hard time." Infierno shakes his head. "Didn't expect I'd be congratulating you like this."
"Fuck's that supposed to mean, culero?" Gabriela snaps back, narrowing her eyes. "Didn't think I could do it?"
"Nah, I knew you could. Just figured it'd be..." Infierno pauses for a moment, searching for the right word. "Louder? You're not exactly subtle."
"Point." Gabriela sighs, rubbing the bridge of her nose. "I figure I save the big loud for when I actually win the goddamn title. No use blowing it on the pregame." She cocks her head to the side. "So...you ain't here on a work visa, are you?"
"Absolutely not." Infierno shakes his head. "It's, like, sixteen hundred dollars to get a visa, and it takes too fuckin' long." He looks around with a half-grin on his face. "Why, you gonna turn me in?"
"Don't even joke about that." Gabriela shakes her head. "Nah, just remembering." She takes a step forward, gently slugging Infierno in the shoulder. "Just good to see a familiar face."
"Does this really count?" Infierno snarks at her, patting the side of his mask. Gabriela rolls her eyes at the question and Infierno flashes another crooked grin, shrugging. "Easy joke. Come on, they're gonna kick you out at some point. Might as well go get some food, enjoy ourselves for a minute."
"You buyin'?" Gabriela shoots back, beginning to walk down the hall. Infierno does a double-take as he begins to follow her, and Gabriela's expression remains impassive. "Look, tradition is tradition. You want to take me out, you gotta buy. That's the rules."
Infierno rolls his eyes. "Jesus."
"He's still in Guadalajara, what's he got to do with it?"
That one earns a return slug to Gabriela's shoulder, who reacts as if she's been shot, staggering across the hallway dramatically. Infierno shakes his head, and Gabriela chuckles, resuming her walk. "You're the big shot wrestling in America. You just won the main event of a TV program watched by millions. I saw more of your shirts in the crowd than I've sold in the last year, probably more. I had to lie to the people at the airport to get in. And you're asking mi pobre culo to buy you dinner?"
Gabriela looks over, keeping her expression steady for a moment. After a second, she breaks out into a slightly shamefaced grin. "...was worth a shot?"
Infierno looks over at Gabriela, an expression of utter disbelief readable even through the mask. He rubs the bridge of his nose, groaning, and shakes his head. "You try my patience, woman."
"I try everyone's patience. It's part of my appeal." Gabriela smirks. "At least that's what the marketing team says. Come on. Food sounds good, and the last thing I want is for the religious war to catch up to us." She takes a few more steps as Infierno watches her, trying to process everything. As she notices she's lost her companion, Gabriela groans, looking back. "And I'll buy. Cheap-ass."
Infierno perks up, walking forward again with a smile on his face. "You're the best, Gabi."
Gabriela groans, nodding. "Damn right I am." She hangs her head as the two walk down the hall and around the corner, and we fade out on the empty hallway.
I. Told. You.
I told you I would win that qualifier. I told you I would be the last entrant in Last Rites. And the doubt came out. After all, I was up against some long odds, I hadn't wrestled in months, there was no way I was going to be able to keep up with the pace.
Who's setting the pace now, pendejos?
This match is a torture unlike any any of us have ever seen. None of y'all have done this before, because nobody has done it before. There's only one thing I can guarantee with this Last Rites match: being in last? Hell of a lot better than being in first. Vaya con Dios, Crystal. You're gonna need Him.
This is all about the unknown. Anyone could enter this match, anyone could win it, anything could happen. We know where we're going, but not how to get there. All we can guarantee is that this is going to be some crazy-ass shit. Personally? I'm hyped. This match seems picture-perfect for me. It makes sense. Why wouldn't the match to crown the Luchadora Champion be tailored for a luchadora?
I ain't gonna pretend that I don't have a fuckin' mountain to climb. I ain't gonna pretend that there ain't God knows how many women back there hoping to spoil things for me, hoping to take the victory I fought and sacrificed for and spike it into the dirt. It's gonna be messy, it's gonna be bloody, it's gonna be vicious. I like to think I've proven that no matter how much you beat the shit outta me, I'ma come back for more. Gotta kill me to stop me, and ain't no killin' the Phoenix.
We got people coming out the woodwork recently. Rowan, Jess Reed, all sorts of bullshit. Hell, I wouldn't be surprised to see Eternity's creepy ass pop up again. I don't know what it is callin' them back, but they're gonna see what's changed while they were gone. All it takes is a moment to shift everything. All it takes is the blink of an eye to change a world. You gotta keep your eyes on the game, or you're gonna get lost and left behind. Simple as that.
This ain't just about talking trash, it's about reality. I know that if I step back, if I take the moment some say I need to get my head together, it could be the last step I take. I could step back into a world falling apart and have nothing I could do to fix it. So no matter how beat down I get, no matter how much it hurts, I gotta keep going. I gotta keep fighting, because as long as I can make that choice I got a chance. As long as I can make myself get back up, I got a chance. I ain't never forgot that. I ain't never chosen to be anything less than all I got...and that's what's going to make the difference. Y'all want to win. I refuse to lose.
Being the first Luchadora Champion isn't about ticking a box on a list to me. It ain't about just makin' something happen for the sake of making something happen. It's about setting an example. It's about pride, it's about tradition, it's about the only fucking thing that's ever given my life any kind of meaning. I had nothing before I had lucha libre. You think a poor-ass tapatÃa street kid was ever gonna have a respectable career? Nine to five, saving money for retirement? Nah. I couldn't stay still that long, I couldn't work in the system that long. I woulda died before too long. This was my only chance...and I'm gonna ride it until I can't walk.
I ain't gonna pretend I got forever. Don't gotta die to do something stupid, or break down. I had to watch one of my heroes haul his ass out here, broken-down, a shell of a man, and get torn to shreds by Angel. A man I grew up watching, idolizing, dreaming about...broken to pieces. Human. I ain't stupid enough to think the same couldn't happen to me. But I'm gonna be damned if I don't make the most of my fuckin' time. I'm going to do everything I can with the time I got, and I pity any of y'all bitches who try to stop me.
You're gonna beat seven shades of shit outta me. Y'all are gonna shortcut and twist and turn and cheat your way as far as you can, y'all are gonna paint that canvas red with blood, all because you're paying attention to one word: champion. You don't care about what comes before, all you care about is being champion. You don't care about what it means, the history, the importance of something like this. Everyone gushes over Japan and strong style, over the originators of lucha libre...but the luchadoras never got their time. Until today.
This is going to be remembered. This is going to be something that y'all are gonna be able to tell your grandchildren about, and they'll tell their grandchildren. This is the moment where decades of hard work, of clawing and scraping and bleeding, of late nights and earlier mornings, no sleep, no money, dragging yourself through the curtain because the roar of the crowd and the thrill of the fight is the only thing that makes you feel alive...this is where it all comes together.
Este es mi momento, y yo nunca he preparé como este en todo mi vida. Este es mi triunfo. Este es todo. El DÃa de La Fenix ha llegado.
MÃrame. Mira y aprenden.
Let's light this shit up.
I told you I would win that qualifier. I told you I would be the last entrant in Last Rites. And the doubt came out. After all, I was up against some long odds, I hadn't wrestled in months, there was no way I was going to be able to keep up with the pace.
Who's setting the pace now, pendejos?
This match is a torture unlike any any of us have ever seen. None of y'all have done this before, because nobody has done it before. There's only one thing I can guarantee with this Last Rites match: being in last? Hell of a lot better than being in first. Vaya con Dios, Crystal. You're gonna need Him.
This is all about the unknown. Anyone could enter this match, anyone could win it, anything could happen. We know where we're going, but not how to get there. All we can guarantee is that this is going to be some crazy-ass shit. Personally? I'm hyped. This match seems picture-perfect for me. It makes sense. Why wouldn't the match to crown the Luchadora Champion be tailored for a luchadora?
I ain't gonna pretend that I don't have a fuckin' mountain to climb. I ain't gonna pretend that there ain't God knows how many women back there hoping to spoil things for me, hoping to take the victory I fought and sacrificed for and spike it into the dirt. It's gonna be messy, it's gonna be bloody, it's gonna be vicious. I like to think I've proven that no matter how much you beat the shit outta me, I'ma come back for more. Gotta kill me to stop me, and ain't no killin' the Phoenix.
We got people coming out the woodwork recently. Rowan, Jess Reed, all sorts of bullshit. Hell, I wouldn't be surprised to see Eternity's creepy ass pop up again. I don't know what it is callin' them back, but they're gonna see what's changed while they were gone. All it takes is a moment to shift everything. All it takes is the blink of an eye to change a world. You gotta keep your eyes on the game, or you're gonna get lost and left behind. Simple as that.
This ain't just about talking trash, it's about reality. I know that if I step back, if I take the moment some say I need to get my head together, it could be the last step I take. I could step back into a world falling apart and have nothing I could do to fix it. So no matter how beat down I get, no matter how much it hurts, I gotta keep going. I gotta keep fighting, because as long as I can make that choice I got a chance. As long as I can make myself get back up, I got a chance. I ain't never forgot that. I ain't never chosen to be anything less than all I got...and that's what's going to make the difference. Y'all want to win. I refuse to lose.
Being the first Luchadora Champion isn't about ticking a box on a list to me. It ain't about just makin' something happen for the sake of making something happen. It's about setting an example. It's about pride, it's about tradition, it's about the only fucking thing that's ever given my life any kind of meaning. I had nothing before I had lucha libre. You think a poor-ass tapatÃa street kid was ever gonna have a respectable career? Nine to five, saving money for retirement? Nah. I couldn't stay still that long, I couldn't work in the system that long. I woulda died before too long. This was my only chance...and I'm gonna ride it until I can't walk.
I ain't gonna pretend I got forever. Don't gotta die to do something stupid, or break down. I had to watch one of my heroes haul his ass out here, broken-down, a shell of a man, and get torn to shreds by Angel. A man I grew up watching, idolizing, dreaming about...broken to pieces. Human. I ain't stupid enough to think the same couldn't happen to me. But I'm gonna be damned if I don't make the most of my fuckin' time. I'm going to do everything I can with the time I got, and I pity any of y'all bitches who try to stop me.
You're gonna beat seven shades of shit outta me. Y'all are gonna shortcut and twist and turn and cheat your way as far as you can, y'all are gonna paint that canvas red with blood, all because you're paying attention to one word: champion. You don't care about what comes before, all you care about is being champion. You don't care about what it means, the history, the importance of something like this. Everyone gushes over Japan and strong style, over the originators of lucha libre...but the luchadoras never got their time. Until today.
This is going to be remembered. This is going to be something that y'all are gonna be able to tell your grandchildren about, and they'll tell their grandchildren. This is the moment where decades of hard work, of clawing and scraping and bleeding, of late nights and earlier mornings, no sleep, no money, dragging yourself through the curtain because the roar of the crowd and the thrill of the fight is the only thing that makes you feel alive...this is where it all comes together.
Este es mi momento, y yo nunca he preparé como este en todo mi vida. Este es mi triunfo. Este es todo. El DÃa de La Fenix ha llegado.
MÃrame. Mira y aprenden.
Let's light this shit up.
Well howdy there pardner.