The Gatekeepers.

[Sabin / Madjinn]

“Do you really believe that?”

“I don’t know…” Sabin admits.

Wraith’s nostrils flare out with a snort, as they restrain themself from letting out a loud laughter. They knew that the doubt that Sabin needed Wraith to thrive was planted inside of Sabin’s mind because of Angel Blake making such a comment; insinuating that Sabin could be better, and be different from the monster that the world knew Angel to be.

“Could you do what I did?” Wraith asks with a hoarse voice that comes out as more of a growl. “Could you choke Pax Stormcrow out to the point that he loses everything?! Who was once viewed with such high promise, such high regard. The likes of JC Keeton, the likes of Nick Knight, and the likes of…” Their gaze fixates on Sabin who sits as a child being scolded, “Us.” Wraith finishes the statement, letting the word trail off their tongue.

Wraith closes the distance between themself and Sabin, and crouches down so the two are at eye-level with one another, “Could you choke the spirit out of him?” Wraith asks while cocking their head to the side. They trace their tongue along their lips, and then stand back up and continue their slow pace within the void and their hands folded behind their back.

“And you are doubting that you need me when you need me MORE! THAN! EVER!” Wraith’s voice resonates in the void. They take a couple of long strides through the void and stand with their back to Sabin, “He challenged us. HE! CHALLENGED! US! He wants to fight us in something that he believes he is going to have the advantage in, but you need to keep in mind that every single time I have stepped into the ring, the ONLY thing that has held me back from ripping people apart piece by piece, until they are unrecognizable, was the mere fact that I want something MORE… I want something MORE than just ending their careers. I want something MORE than just watching them squirm, and beg for mercy, and unfortunately, it meant that I had to play by the rules… I had to play by the rules, because refusing to do that would only lead to our downfall. I want something more…” Wraith shoots a glance over their shoulder at Sabin, “I want GLORY!” They say, and turn their head forward again.

“He has something I want– he has something WE want…” Wraith mutters.

Objects are starting to materialize inside of the void; objects that are designed to create the utmost amount of damage to anyone unlucky enough to be trapped in it. The void has become a replica to what they are going to step into at Odyssey, or what has appropriately been deemed Holiday Havoc, an event that Wraith had seen one of their first major victories in their career; a victory over their stepfather, Angel Blake, in what would be known as Wraith’s bloodiest, and most dangerous match to date… The Three Stages of Hell… and one year later, the challenge would be made by Nick Knight to face off against his former adversary, the former IWF Men’s World Champion, Wraith, in a match that promises to be bloodier…and deadlier… an exploding barbed wire match.

Wraith snorts out, letting out another hearty chuckle while looking at everything that was presented to them by the stage. Wraith clicks their tongue several times before finally resuming, “The World Television Championship!” they say aloud, and suck in air through their teeth, “I had an– epiphany–” Wraith says with a subtle pause, as if to search for the correct word, “–of what we are going to do. The world already knows our name! The world already SCREAMS our name! We have made history,” Wraith turns their attention back to Sabin, and cocks their head to the side; there is a subtle smile on their face, a sincere smile as they resume with the next fact, “By making you the youngest IWF World Champion in the history of the company…and believe me when I say…it will not be the last time that you earn that title, but there are other things to conquer! And they will all come… in due time… But we… do not… have to go chasing anyone for this. For, you see, he came…TO US. He has something we want… And this is how he wants to give it…” They continue, and their lips curl into a sadistic grin.

“I remember oh so much about NICK! KNIGHT! I remember how he thought that he was going to be the one to conquer us at High Stakes, and that he was going to give himself the golden ticket to the main event of Night of the Immortals… Where he thought that he was going to defend the title on the grandest stage of them all, but I remember how we had him LOCKED in the middle of the ring, and he had no choice but to TAP OUT! For the world to see, he TAPPED OUT because he knew that he was out of his league…and I believe that throughout all of the time that has passed from that fateful night, it was EATING HIM ALIVE! It was eating at him to know that as much as he talks, he was just NOT in OUR league! He brought everything he could… He dug as deep as he could, and it was eating at him that it was just NOT ENOUGH!” Wraith finishes with another chuckle.

They remain still momentarily, and shrug their shoulders while the next question comes to their mind, “What has changed? What makes him believe that he has what it takes to gain his redemption? And to ask for something in such a playground… a playground in which he believes that he has the advantage?! He wants to take everything out of the equation… NO RULES! NOTHING holding us back from hurting him; from making him unrecognizable… He believes that we are the path that he must go through to gain a shot at Father, but he does not understand that this…is the road…to avoid. He should have taken the scenic route. He should have avoided this road at all costs. When the monsters start coming, he should have hoped that he would not hold what we want at the time! But he comes down this road with what we want… he comes down here TAUNTING us, and he believes that he is going to make it to the end of the road?” Wraith huffs.

“Nothing…is stopping us… nothing is going to stop us from breaking him! Nothing is going to stop us from implanting that same thought in the back of his mind, just as we did with Pax Stormcrow, and just as we did with JC Keeton; for, you see, although JC Keeton lived to tell the tale… WE are the ones that are still standing! When he walked out of Night of the Immortals, he was not the same. We exposed him for what he was! We pulled back the curtain so that the entire world would know him for what he is! And we would also pull the curtain back to expose Pax Stormcrow for what he is, and now…should we pull that same curtain back on Nick Knight? We are going to take the title, that is absolute! We are going to call ourselves the World Television Champion! We are going to call ourselves a DOUBLE CHAMPION! We are going to be known to the company as a TRIPLE CROWN, as we go forward to break another record and become the YOUNGEST! EVER! To be called a GRAND SLAM WINNER! But… you know… I really do not want to break him. I just want him to know that every time he comes down this road, he is not going to conquer it! Every time he comes down this road, he is going to live to REGRET IT! And give it enough times, enough times as he may try, he is soon going to look down this road and know to take the long way… But I do not want to break him, because win or lose, I want him to take a chance at Father, and to be honest, if I am not the one chasing Father for the championship, I cannot think of anyone else that is suitable to fight him for it… and that is tragic…” Wraith purses their lips and shakes their head.

“It is exactly as I said: WE! OWN! THE IMPERIAL WRESTLING FEDERATION! WE! ARE! ETERNAL! WE! ARE! THE GATEKEEPERS! And Nick Knight will fall to me… and then I hope he will go forward with whatever scraps from his spirit he can gain, and he will take the fight to Father, without a title. And he will fall, too. He will live to know… he will NEVER be good enough.

End.