Hail To The King

[Ghost Spike]

HAIL TO THE KING


Pride comes before the fall, and the fall certainly came at the hands of Lex Sense. The Imperial Champion. A man who I’ve wanted to share the ring with for quite some time. A man who I proclaimed didn’t deserve to hold that championship, a man who I seemingly underestimated, and misjudged.

I was wrong.

Some people don’t know when to admit as such, when to accept that they are wrong, they are flawed, and reconcile such actions. I have never been ashamed of making mistakes, after all it’s those mistakes that led me to where I am today. A household name, a living breathing legend, and one of the most dangerous men to ever step foot in the ring with. Last week, I slipped, I allowed Lex to capitilise on my mistakes, and now by the skin of my teeth I’ve been given a chance to amend that.

A chance to redeem my lose, and take that gold.

But in my way stand five people who are hungry, aggressive, and extremely talented. People I respect, people I detest, and people I just don’t care about….but the thing is, in these kinds of environments I thrive. Chaos is where the God of Xtreme thrives and I need this as much as I want this. Lex has pushed my buttons, and now it’s time to push back. I’d wish you all luck, but I don’t think you deserve it…..that’s right, I mean it. You see, you all stand between me and the one thing that The God of Xtreme demands….

Greatness.

See you on Monday boys, in the maelstrom, in the fury of the storm….just remember. Chaos is my home.

~~~

August 26th 2013
Awesome Proportion Wrestling School
Hellview, Boston.

Dr Griffiths has ordered me to write the diary entries like before with the recent events that have happened in my life. I’m not sure what to say really, tonight I had a chance to prove myself against the Imperial Champion, instead he proved himself against me. Lex Sense and I have never really had much interaction in the ring, but it seems that our careers are spiralling towards each other in a way neither of us expect. Who would have thought the night of Lineage that Lex Sense and Spike Kane could end up being a match for the Imperial Title?

I know the talk of gold is pretty paper thin, but it’s the least I can do to take my mind off of Alysson and Xander. Everytime I think of them I feel sick, I feel weak, like my life isn’t even worth living. I cut myself accidentally on a box the other day, and when Rob saw the cut he thought that I was self harming. I laughed, because it seemed so ludicrous, but the next time I was alone the thought of it felt so tempting. I didn’t though, as emo as I’ve been, I didn’t go that far. Besides….if I wanted to self harm, I’d antagonise the Juggernauts.

Smart move, eh?

~~~

The camera flickers to life and we see Spike Kane walk into the frame having set up a camera at his wrestling school down in Hellview, Boston. Spike moves to sit on the ring apron of the ring set up in the main hall. Behind him is a huge banner with the logo of the school as well as a list of it’s graduates and their individual achievements, as well as Spike’s of course.

“This is gonna be one hell of a fight come Monday Night. Six people walk into that ring looking for their chance at glory, but only one person can have it. Only one person can walk out with his hand held high, no matter what happens. No matter who works with who, no matter who turns on who….it’s all about the one. I’ve got a pretty strong feeling though, that it won’t by Cyrus “The Amnesiac” Daniels. Hi Cy!”

Spike waves at the camera with an incredibly fake smile on his face.

“Seems you have forgotten how things went down the last few months Mister Daniels. Let me tell you, you got your ass kicked, over and over. Don’t get me wrong, you had your moment to shine. You beat me - hands down, and there is nothing I can say about that. Except that every dog has it’s day, and yours has been and gone….mate. I see you’ve got yourself a new partner, and all of a sudden everything that happened between Criminal Intent and InFamous just disappears, right? Selective memory Cyrus, it isn’t good in a sport like this. I love how you brush both Rob and I off like we are nothing, yet you expect us to buy you as a threat. What do we bring? How about the pure and utter domination of an entire division? Huh? How about more world heavyweight titles between us than times you’ve had to carry Stephen Kingsley? Hmmm? I know it’s a lot, isn’t it?”

Spike’s face slides from the smile into a sneer, his hatred for Cyrus Daniels plain for all to see.

“You are one of the most pathetic men I’ve ever comes across. You use and abuse your partner and his sister…..swing swing by the way - and threaten children…..threaten children man. I’m an absolute asshole and even I’d never do that. Then when it all goes pete tong, you blame your partner. The weak link, and take him out of the equation - because of course it gives you an easy win, right? I mean seriously who has actually lost to Stephen Kingsley? My point exactly. Your crowning achievement is defeating my Cyrus, and that in and of itself, isn’t exactly special when you spend half your promo tearing me down, is it? I mean you claim I’m nothing, I’m over-rated, and my time is over…..so what does your victory over me say about you?”

Spike cracks a grin and cocks an eyebrow as his point seems to hit home.

“Exactly. Your ignorance will be your downfall Cyrus, once again. You are right though, about the new face of the company being new and fresh, but if you were trying to insinuate that it would be yourself your words were surely incorrect. Untested? Sure….you’ve never lost here have you? I don’t see how you can say InFamous are on the brink of destruction because we lost singles matches, but you…..you’re a supreme force because you lost tag matches? Hmm...didn’t think that one through did ya? But then again you colonial f*ckwits aren’t exactly known for your intelligence. Speaking of which, insulting your tag team partner was a smooth move by the way, dumbass. I won’t like Cyrus, you are a talented individual, and you have a lot of promise. I can see you going all the way, I can see gold in your future….but not this time buddy. Your rookie mistakes will come back to bite you in the ass, and you’ll regret the day you ever crossed the God of Xtreme.”

Spike’s face is one of ultimate intensity, but he closes his eyes to regain control of his temper. He reopened them with a look of renewed focus.

“Which of course in turn brings me to your partner….Bernard De Montfort. For most parts the unknown in this match. The son of the owner, soldier, and apparently complete idiot. Siding with Cyrus Daniels isn’t exactly the smartest of moves, although I do consider you quite the step up from Stephen Kingsley. The thing is Bernie, I don’t know what to think about you, I mean you made your name for yourself in this company by attacking Roberto Verona, who by chance happens to be a close friend of mine. So part of me already wants to kick your teeth in…..I tried to get into your frame of mind, to see your viewpoint but for all intents and purposes all I can see is a rebel without a cause. Lashing out just because you can, being the ultimate upper class brat and rebelling against Daddy….because we all know you had it so bad.”

Spike makes a sarcastic “woe is you” face as he stares at the camera, his eyebrows parted and sad looking, with a mockingly sad look left on his face.

“To me Bernard, you are just another rich kid who bought his way into this company. I don’t care if it was your money, Daddy’s money, or the british feckin’ army that trained you for this sport. You are not a wrestler Bernard, no matter what you try to portray yourself as, you are a failure. A failed soldier, a failed son, and a failed wrestler - already. I never had the chance to fail in the Heir to the Throne tournament, but I can imagine it stung your pride quite considerably, huh? I am surprised though, that you didn’t go running to Daddy and force him to give you another shot. Force him to put the mighty Bernard De Montfort at the forefront of the company. No….actually….that’d just be bad business wouldn’t it?”

You guessed it, another facial expression from The Spiked One. It’s the “not impressed” face, which some of you may be familiar with especially with Spike’s particular facial features.

“People like and people like me don’t mix Bernie. I know you are probably raging right now, of how I haven’t paid attention to your speeches, how I missed your point against Verona, about how your personal little war has gone right over my head much like the roles the rest of your brothers play. The thing is Bernard - I don’t care. I don’t like you, I don’t like your attitude, and I don’t like the fact that you think you can walk in here and suddenly be at the top of the company. People have thrown around the words of what have you done to deserve this shot. Please tell me Bernard, what have you done exactly? Point hit home? You don’t deserve this chance Bernad, you don’t deserve to be in this match, you don’t deserve to share the ring with half of these guys…..and most of all, you don’t deserve to call yourself a wrestler.”

Spike slides off of the apron and comes closer to the camera.

“The pair of you are just a pair of thugs, you have no idea what it takes to be a successful wrestler, and quite frankly you never will…..enjoy your brief moment in the spotlight boys - because it won’t last long….I’m going to take it!”

And with that and a cheeky grin from Spike the camera feed cuts to static.

~~~

August 28th 2013
On the road

I took a trip to see Wade. It’s been a while since I saw him, and he’s been trying to get in touch with me since he found out that Aly left me. He was quite shocked that the judge let us keep the school, but to be brutally honest I couldn’t give a shit, because it all means nothing to me. I miss my son like crazy. The latest news?

I’m under psychiatric evaluation - fucking brilliant.

I’m pissed off, and it’s no surprise, I mean who wouldn’t be? I know Rob is a little worried, he can only walk on eggshells so long and it’s just a matter of time before I say something that pisses him off. This week we’re in a match against each other, and I know it means a lot to him….but I need this one. I know he’ll try just as hard as I will, and I will do the same, hopefully one of us will win, but I’m sure we’ll be fine if we don’t…..half of me just doesn’t care.

I miss my wife.

I miss my son.

~~~

The feed cuts back in again, but this time the camera has been moved. Instead of being inside Spike’s wrestling school it is instead set against the backdrop of the bedroom in Spike’s RV. Spike moves back into focus wearing some cut off shorts and a new InFamous t-shirt, rubbing his chin and grabbing his energy drink can as he sits down in front of the camera.

“This match, it wouldn’t be a cluster-beep- if it wasn’t for HonorBound. Both Cable Arcane, and Gjenrei himself. This will be the third time we’ve shared the ring with other opponents, and if history repeats itself...Rob or myself will be walking away with the victory. First of all I gotta talk to Gjenrei. Ever since you sneakily revealed who you were in a promo I’ve been watching some of your matches on youtube, and I gotta say - you were brutal dude. You were the kind of guy that I would have loved to have had a series of matches with. We could have had an “xtreme-off” where we tried to outdo each other. You pick a stipulation, then I pick one...like a best of series but with more punishment than you’d expect. The thing is though Gjenrei….I am STILL the God of Xtreme…..what happened to you?”

Spike shrugs holding his hands up and making a mockingly caring facial expression.

“How do you go from being one of the most violent people I’ve ever seen to….this coward that can’t even express himself to the degree he deserves to? I know that Angel and Falcon have a way of teaching their students, and trust me when I tell you this - I know the lengths that those two would go to, to ensure victory. I’ve suffered at the hands of Falcon…..not many people can say that, because he chooses his targets very selectively. The thing is, that should send warning signs to you….Kyle...Falcon, the Gjenrei before you. He thought that I was a threat, he saw the possibility and cut it off at the source, blindsided me and took me out. I’ve taken each man to their limits, much like I’ve taken yourself and your partner to your limits. I am the man that many people stand to test their commitment against, to test the level of their abilities, and you pass me off so subjectively. You think that my pride will be the end of me, newsflash kid - my pride is the reason why I’ve captured so much gold around the world, and why my name is always spoken with respect.”

Cue a nice big "told you so” like gesture from The Spiked One, who takes a sip from his energe drink.

“Thing is Gjenrei, you have what it takes to be a breakout star, I can’t deny that and I can’t stand in the way of that - nor will I. I’ve always been the kind of guy who helps usher in the next generation of talent. I’ve done it with some of the superstars who are here with us today, and some who have since hung up the boots, I even did it with Rob. However, I don’t want you to think that I’m going to lay down, I don’t want you to thnk that I won’t be trying to win this match as hard as you will be, fighting for my chance to make my name in yet another federation. I want this, and I need it…..so I will fight as hard as I can, and let’s be honest here Gjenrei - your record in multi-man matches isn’t exactly stellar, I think you’ll find that in those matches it’s always a hand that belongs to InFamous that is raised…..that goes to you too Cable!”

At this point Spike holds up a comic book on his table, an issue of Cable & Deadpool.

“Yeah, Wade really wanted to come back and team with you just because of this. Though I advised him against it, so he’s still running the school, which is fine with me as he’s the best graduate I’ve ever had. You should have the advantage in this match if you were to look at it one way Arcane. I mean when it comes to all of us, you were the closest to being the Imperial Champion. You got to the semi-finals, and then somehow lost to Joe Everyman…….damn, that’s never gonna go away is it?”

Spike makes a “I suppose so” expression with another shrug before a slight chuckle.

“You got one step further than Bernard did…..and then proceeded to lose another tag team title match. Oh yeah, you can use the Mike Laszlo patented defence and say you weren’t pinned or made to submit - that’s probably how you got your third title shot - but we both know it’s true, in fact all four of us do. You never stood a chance, because you were outclassed in every way shape and form. You talk about the side of you that we’ve yet to see...some apparent destructive force, reminds me of my old buddy Angel. Well, we weren’t buddies…..in fact we were enemies - but not social enemies! Ah? Eh? Nothing? Screw you. I’m begging you Cable….release it, let it flow, bring every god damn thing you have because I’ve been threatened by better men, who were a hell of a lot more scarier than you are, and guess what buddy? I withstood it all. I’ve taken the best that the nastiest bastards on this planet have had to deliver - and I’m still here, I’m still standing. So make vague threats, spouts about the dark side…..take the cliched route, and I’ll be waiting, to kick it back down your throat.”

Snarl. Yeah, that’s right, a snarl on the face of Spike as he talks about Cable.

“I’ve faced Angel head on, in a Dragon’s Den and emerged victorious, I’ve faced Homeless Harold face to face, I’ve taken on Milo Holland at his worse. Something you should know about me Arcane, I don’t back down, ever. I never shirk from a fight, and I most certainly am never intimidated by words and words alone. I am a fighter, and I always have been. I’m not a hero, and I never wanted to be. I am simply Spike Kane, I am the God of Xtreme - an accolade I have proven my worth of holding time and time again, you my friend are just the next in a very long line of people who will witness this first hand. When I look down on you when my hand is raised as the new number one contender for the Imperial Title and my path to revenge over Lex Sense is set in stone…..and the era of InFamous simply moves to the next level.”

Arms outstretched. Ready for it? Crotch chop. Suck it. Static.

~~~

August 30th 2013
Rob’s House, Boston.

Found a new entrance theme, which is kind of cool. Will really pay off if I manage to win on Monday, not that it really matters much. In other news, I’ve been talking to Jake, speaking about the court case and how it all got screwed up. He’s invited me over to try and patch things up with Kat……..

It’s long overdue.

I put that poor woman through hell just because I could. I’m so lucky that Jake is understanding and willing to work things through with me, he’s a good friend and he has been for quite some time. I hope that Kathleen can forgive me and we can work through this. Thought I wouldn’t blame her if she refused….maybe it’s true that I really do deserve everyhting that is happening to me? I deserve to be manipulated by my father…..I deserve for my marriage to be a sham influenced by my father, and the flesh and blood created from that marriage to be taken away from me by the next wife on the list…..she was supposed to be the one….

She was supposed to be the one!

My heart breaks when I think about what I did and what it pushed her to do.I loved Alysson with every ounce of my being, no matter what happened I always did, even when she snuck off to be with Ayla - she always came home to me at the end of the day…..but those feelings, they don’t exist anymore. People may think I’m out of control, I’m out of order….but I’m not….how can I love her?

She took my son.

~~~

One more time the camera opens up and this time it’s the bedroom at the house of Rob Diamond, the room we last saw covered in beer and whiskey bottles, with pizza boxes on the floor. This time it’s quite clean, the bed is made and everything, Spike comes back into focus now wearing a different pair of shorts and an old Spike Kane “Hardcore Homecoming” t-shirt.

“Rob. We both knew that it would come to this one day. We knew that we’d dominate the tag team division so much that it just wouldn’t be able to contain us, and no matter what Riley Griffiths throws at us, he just can’t keep us down. Over three months and as a team we’re undefeated, that my friend is pretty impressive. You yourself have been undefeated until last week, and that is just outstanding. I’ve watched you grow up dude, I know that sounds lame, but it’s the truth. I’ve seen you become the man that you are today, and the competitor that you have become today - and I’ve said it before, and I’ll probably say it again. I’m proud of you.”

Spike nods his head, his face as serious as a zoo keeper feeding a lion.

“I will always have your back brother, no matter what happens. I’ve been there for you through thick and thin, and I always will be, just like you are for me. I’ve had to move in with you and boy have the roles been reversed, but I appreciate it, and seeing you with Hope really brings warmth to my heart…..but this isn’t about InFamous right now, this isn’t about two friends who may aswell be brothers….it’s about the Imperial Championship, and as much as you want it Rob….I need it. I can’t let you beat me to it. I’m not saying you won’t or I’ll derail your plans, nothing like that. If you win I’ll support you all the way, I’ll watch your back when the Juggernauts make themselves known…..and I’d expect the same from you. I feel kind of shitty that we’re fighting over something that by rights should be Joe’s….but he made his bed, now he has to lie in it.”

A smirk spreads across Spike’s face as he places a hand on the bed he has been sleeping on at the house of Rob Diamond just a short distance from his former home with Alysson and his son.

“I know that you’ll bring everything you can to the match on Monday Rob, and I wouldn’t expect anything less. Just know that I’ll do the same, I’ll fight with every fibre of my being to get that shot at the Imperial Championship because I need it Rob, more than I’ve ever needed that shot in my life. Everything has fallen to shit around me, so I need to do the only thing I know to do….fight. Scratch, claw, kick, and punch my way to my own sanity, before I give in and let it all crash on top of me. Regardless of it all….I will shake your hand no matter who wins because I love you too Rob. You are my brother, and my best friend, and we will still be the undefeated tag team champions when it is all said and done. There’s just one thing boys…..Rob, as much as I love you…..Cable, Gjenrei, Bernie, Cyrus…..one man will raise above you all….and I promise you now it will be The God of Xtreme….and you will all bow…you will hail….”

Spike stands up, and a slightly sinister look spreads across his face as he extends his arms and balls his fists.

“Hail to the king!”

Static motherbitches.