Extinguishing The Flame

[The Black Widow]

When you're high up in Ryougoku Kokugikan , the view is absolutely stunning. The first thing that catches your eye is the impressive sumo ring, where the wrestlers showcase their strength and skill. As you take in the surroundings, you'll notice the sea of seats, normally filled with enthusiastic fans eagerly awaiting the matches. Vivid golds and deep reds stretch across the view, as far as the eye can see.

Currently, the arena stands conspicuously vacant. The transformation has not started, but soon, a team of committed individuals from the Imperial Wrestling Federation will diligently start the setup for Odyssey, working tirelessly to prepare the venue.

Perched high in the arena, the Black Widow sits in solitude, slumped in her chair, a foot resting against the back of the seat in front of her. She twists off the cap of a small bottle of liquor—Jack Daniels, Tennessee Fire, for the inquisitive—and partakes in its contents with a single swill. Her father's daughter through-and-through, she does not even flinch.

"Two week, two draws." Offering a half shrug, the Black Widow shows very little concern for her present situation in this phase of the Heiress to the Throne tournament. "It's whatever. The Savage Kingdom is still sitting in second place. I keep getting what I want. I keep getting new toys to play with."

"Last week it was Abigail, and there is so much beauty in her anger. I felt her darkness, and it was exquisite." The Black Widow traces her tongue along her lips before cracking a smile. "But your lover, Abby... now there is some real darkness I could sink my teeth into, and I promise the three of us will play again soon."

"Madjinn and I have a date with Pax Stormcrow and Charlotte Shimizu first, though... and this lady never turns down an opportunity for a free meal. Especially when the prey practically strums on my web." She gently taps her fingers against her knee, slowly and rhythmically. "I have felt those vibrations, and I assure you, it is a dangerous game you play."

"Do you know why I chose to film here for you both, though?" Opening her arms, she gestures to the entirety of the Ryougoku Kokugikan. "In this place we will dance a magnificent dance of destruction."

"Call it curiosity."

"Arenas such as this, they're where you cut your teeth, aren't they, Charlie? Maybe not this specific one, but here, in Japan. This is practically home to you, isn't it? You're the hero now, sure. When you walk out with Pax on Tuesday, someone is going to sit in this very seat, and they're going to cheer for you, Charlie. Only they didn't always love you, did they?"

Unapologetically crass, the Black Widow hocks up a loogy and spits it to her right, off camera. "No, see, people, they want to judge me for what I do. Ever since Madjinn and I made our little video, everyone has an opinion about me, and they all seem to want me to give a fuck. Everyone has an opinion on Madjinn, about who he is."

"We're not the ones that sold our souls to get here though, are we, Charlie?"

"The videos aren't easy to find, but they're there. Anyone wanting to dig deep enough can find them. It is just amazing how easily people are willingly able to forget certain things when it comes to some people, but so quick to condemn others for their actions. Even here, now, some of the same people that once detested you, lift you up."

"They see your success, Charlie, and like the parasites people are, they want to leech just a little off of it, even if it is just a tee shirt. You're the Iron Maiden. You're the hottest new star. You have stood in the same ring as legends and stars alike, and you have beaten some of the best. But this sport doesn't give anyone anything, though. Everything is a trade, and every trade has a price to be paid later and--" Leaning forward, the Black Widow's voice falls to almost a whisper. "I am that price."

Leaning back, she continues in a more conversational tone. "You have never been in the ring with someone quite like me, Charlie. I am a predator. As much as I'd like to beat you, dulling your shine would be just as much of a win. I am going to show the world how desperate you are in here--" The Widow touches her hand to her heart, "to be a star by dragging you back into the gutter from your lofty heights. I'm going to show the world the ugliness inside of you."

"I want you to feel that pain of rejection --the same pain I have felt-- all over again. Because other people's pain is what satiates me. Maybe that makes me sick, but I am true to who I am. I don't hide it. I don't apologize for it. After all, I am what this world has made me. If they can't bear to look at it, that's not my fucking problem."

"I guess the question is: can you bear to look at what the world made you, Charlie?"

Dipping her hand into her jacket pocket, the Black Widow retrieves yet another small bottle of liquor. After finishing the bottle, she carelessly tosses it aside. "I don't think you can."

The Black Widow bends forward, reaching for an item on the ground. "I had a dream the other night about our match at Odyssey, though." She moves her gloved hand, gesturing as she speaks. "In my dream, the worlds of Pax Stormcrow and Charlotte Shimizu had suffered a terrible disaster of monumental proportions. A black haze shut out the sun, and the darkness was alive with your moans and screams of pain. The people you love, and the people that love you, they hoped for you so hard. Suddenly, a small light glowed. A candle flickered into life, a symbol of hope for you both, and your millions of fans."

She pauses for a moment to light a candle, its flame flickering and dancing as she presents it before the camera. "It was as if all of those people willed this single tiny candle, shining in the ugly dark, into existence."

The Black Widow draws the candle closer to her lips. "Madjinn and I laughed and blew it out." With that, she exhales a quick breath on the blame, extinguishing it with a smile. "Just as we'll do when we're face-to-face, and the two of you discover what pain really is."

<End Footage>