"A good day to climb." / Married.

[Sabin / Madjinn]

The sky overhead was perfectly clear – the receding silver glow from the moon bounced off of the jagged rocks that covered much of the terrain. The camera scours across the sky as the first ray of light comes over the horizon…the sunlight chases the darkness away, the darkness crawling away in retreat while in the transition from night to day. The light reflects off of the golden eyes in the dark; the pair of eyes gaze back at the camera. The easily recognized eyes are known as none other than Madjinn, and his concentration falters briefly while standing up – adorned in a pink beanie, shirtless, a pair of hiking pants and boots, he stands at the center frame and casually tucks his hands into his pockets. The light has not yet touched the surface of the mountain, and in the darkness, a barely visible cloud of condensation escapes from Madjinn as he exhales a long held breath. The ground crunches beneath his step as he cocks his head inquisitively to the side, retaining his gaze, but he finally speaks.

“There are going to be many, many, maaany people who are considering making the trek up this mountain throughout the day. They are already sitting in their hotel rooms in Tokyo, and they are trying to get a glimpse of Mount Fuji–” he says whilst pointing downward, “–but they are going to be unable to see it on a day like today. Clouds– lingering in the sky… They are going to be unable to see it, and they are going to start asking the question: is it a good day to climb?”

Rubbing his chin with one hand, he slumps into another step, nonchalantly, and clicks his tongue several times before continuing, “Is it a good day to climb? They let the mystery petrify them… And that is what has been on my mind since I reached the top this time around. Y’see, for the first time ever, that I’ve been thrust into one of these tournaments… I find myself to be in an– uphill battle. We’re now two battles in, and yet The Black Widow and I find ourselves without a win. It’s starting to look a little bit cloudy.” He says in a buoyant tone.

“Is it a good day to climb?” Madjinn asks again, taking a seat on a flat rock behind him. He hunches forward, rubbing his palms together whilst looking out at the scenery being painted in front of him by the sunlight…clouds stretched as far as the eye could see.

“This place is synonymous with many people within our line of work… The top of the mountain,” Madjinn says in a monotonous tone, as the camera pans back as far as it can to unveil a little more of the scenery; he sits at the top of a beacon of Japan, Mount Fuji, with dawn quickly approaching…There is nowhere for Sabin – Madjinn – to go but down. Licking his lips, he resumes, “the place where everybody wants to be. Everybody, coming out of retirement because they saw an opportunity to climb to the highest peak. Everybody, vying for a chance to call themselves the world champion! I mean, seriously, look at your own girlfriend… Look at how quickly she thought that she could climb to the top, and then be deluded into believing that she had an actual chance at defeating my axtláak’w. Tsk, tsk.” He says and then clicks his tongue several times.

“But then I look at you, Pax, and I know exactly what it is you are going to say… You are going to talk about how you beat me last year, and went on to sit at the top of the mountain– even if it was merely for a glimpse, there’s nothing I can say nor do to take away from the fact that you have sat here, just as there is nothing that you can say nor do to take away from the fact that I have been here!” He sniffles whilst gazing over the majestic view ahead of him. The rolling clouds covered Japan like a blanket. The corner of his lips curl into a small smile that he quickly snickers off.

“You’re probably going to throw in some jabs over the name. You’ll probably try to throw some shade at me to talk about how I didn’t defend the TV title as much as you, but even basic math would tell you that I defended my title more often in my three-hundred-fifteen days than you did in your two-hundred-ten days. You’re likely going to tell me how I’ve not earned anything in this industry, and that the only reason I got to where I am is because of who raised me…” He scoffs, and rolls his eyes, “It’s always the same old, same old coming out of you and your sexy little girlfriend – always playing the victim. Always talking about what you’ve endured. Always talking about what you’ve gone through, and failing to consider that we’ve all had our own paths… Some of us have just been a little more successful, and why should we be shunned for it? Why should I be shunned because I’m just better than you? Why should I be shunned because I’m better than the entire roster?!” He rolls his eyes, leaning back against his arms and pressing his hands against the rocks to support himself, “I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: I’m quite used to it. I don’t mind the hate that people want to throw at me. Throw EVERYTHING!” He says with a low growl in his voice, cackling after his statement while visibly becoming lost in thought of what everybody has thrown at him as of late.

“But do you know what the lot of you have in common?” Wagging his finger at the camera in a manner to point at it, and with a sly smirk, he answers his own question, “The thing that all of you have in common is– you’re seasonal wrestlers. You come and go when it suits you, but you never stay for the rough times! I mean, seriously, Pax, aren’t we closing in on your hibernation period? Where the world will be rid of you until the Roulette comes back around, and then you’re gonna have some grand return…? You’re going to do everything to keep your name relevant long enough to go through Heir to the Throne, but when you fail at that… SEE YOU NEXT YEAR!” He says whilst waving at the camera.

Hunching forward again and slowly rubbing his palms together, his facial expression shifts from the playful demeanor to an aggressive one. He pauses for several seconds, the golden eyes continuing to glare at the camera; he licks his lips, and continues, “Do you know what it’s like to be here and watch little shits like you come back and demand to be in the spotlight, and take over my scene? But I’m here. I said it last week, and I’m going to say it again: I! AM! HERE! And I think that’s what bothers all of you… I think it bothers you that while the rest of you crumble, the rest of you break, the rest of you have to leave to find your peace– I find mine… EACH and EVERY! WEEK! Inside of the squared circle. And when I lose the Roulette– I’m back in there. When I lose the Joker in the Pack– I’m back in there! Every time I’ve lost Heir to the Throne– I’m back in there! And the rest of you? You fuck off for the rest of the year!” He doesn’t even try to hide the annoyance in his tone.

“I am married to this business. My family is married to this business. To have and to hold, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish– until death do us part. But the rest of you have the nerve– the audacity– to claim that we are a cancer to this industry.” He sneers, rolling his eyes yet again.

Chattering his teeth a couple of times, he shakes his head and continues, “You, Pax, have been notorious for trying to call us out… You have been notorious for talking a big game, and y’know what I find funny? We’re not even trying to chase you out! We’re not even saying that you can’t back it up! We know– I know that you are fully capable of backing it up. This isn’t our first dance; it won’t be our last. And– I wish I could say that I’m going to certainly win… But this week isn’t about winning, is it? I mean– you and Charlie are sitting at two wins, and no losses, whereas Brandy and I are sitting at two draws with zero wins. Perhaps– this week isn’t about winning… Perhaps…this week…is just about hurting both of you, and showing you why– no matter what you say– this is ours. And when this is all said and done– you can crawl back into obscurity. You can crawl back into meaninglessness. You can crawl back into your hole.”

The camera pans back, as Madjinn holds his arms out as if to put the world on display, “And I’ll still be here… CLIMBING! RECLAIMING ALL that is MINE!”

FADE TO BLACK.