Post by Astrid Hall on May 31, 2017 20:53:59 GMT
May 28, Night of the Immortals
"Come on, sister...!"
Astrid wasn't in the audience, or even backstage, during Night of the Immortals. It wasn't out of bitterness or anger, but rather her own personal drive. Astrid had a habit of spending just about any amount of free time she had training and preparing for the next battle, and now was no different. She could have watched Night of the Immortals from the stands or backstage with the other diamonds, but in her mind she didn't have the time to spare.
In just a few hours, it would be a new year.
Everyone knew that Night of the Immortals was always the beginning of a new year for the IWF, and Astrid wasn't about to go in with any sliver of weakness in her arm. She hadn't made the impact she had been hoping for upon entering the Main Roster - a strong start followed by a series of hard-fought defeats had left her out of the title scene for the near future - but the new year brought new opportunities, and she had every intention of fighting harder than ever for each one that passed near by.
So she trained. She pushed herself to the limits of her physicality, building her strength and stamina, preparing herself for the fights of the new era that would be coming her way. Through it all she watched the screen on the wall across from her, the only light in the room, where her Shield Sister was battling Eternity for the Shieldmaiden title - the very match that she had so desperately hoped to earn a place in. Shae deserved this shot, she knew well... and the whooping cheer of pride as the Irish Bombshell landed the pin was burning and sincere.
"YES! SKOL, SHAE! THAT'S MY FUCKING SHIELD SISTER! I KNEW YOU COULD DO IT! YES!!!"
Weights momentarily forgotten as they fell crashing to the floor, Astrid beamed with joy as she watched her friend pull herself to her feet and stand victorious... the fairy tale reaching the conclusion that Shae O'Hara deserved.
Astrid was breathing heavy as she watched the show cut to commercial, and the returning silence echoed around her as she gazed at the screen. Astrid's smile slowly faded back to neutral exhaustion as she nodded slowly to herself.
"Someday," she said at last to the dark and empty training room, sweat shining on her arms from the intense workout. She smiled again and pointed it the screen as though daring it to argue. "Someday."
She turned her back on the screen and walked back to the weights. She hauled them back to the rack and began pushing herself harder still, taking the next heaviest option available in the training room. Soon she'd need to find a way to go even heavier - two more upgrades and she'd be using the heaviest the gym had to offer.
She didn't know how many battles stood between her and her shot. She didn't know how many enemies she would have to face, have to defeat, and have to endure. It didn't matter. None of it did. She wouldn't give up. She wouldn't stop fighting. She'd keep going, unyielding and unstoppable as the tide, hard as steel, fierce as fire. It was in her blood. It was in her heart.
Someday she'd make it. Someday it would be her standing victorious, belt in hand at Night of the Immortals. Someday it would be her inspiring newer generations of diamonds waiting for their chance at greatness, urging her to go harder and never give up.
It had been a hard few months since her debut, with few victories to hold to in her heart. But that wasn't about to stop her. It wasn't even going to slow her.
After all - in a few short hours, it would be a new year... and who knew what it would bring?
"I underestimated what it would be like, up here in the big leagues."
Astrid stands in an empty ring, walking around with a soft smile as she touches the ropes with care. There are people cleaning the arena around her, closing down after Night of the Immortals - the crowds long gone.
"Back in developmental I was damn near unstoppable. I was the warrior that all the girls hoped they would be able to beat, and so many of them couldn't manage it. I was the most dominant woman in the developmental division, and everyone knew that I was a warrior more than capable of backing up words with steel. A fighter. A warrior. A champion. All that time, through every fight, every struggle, and every victory - I dreamed of being here, right here on this stage. Night of the Immortals, a Diamond of the IWF, fighting for a shot at a championship belt, proving to the world that the developmental kids... matter.
See, a lot of the girls up here in the big leagues forget about us. So many of them never had to go through the developmental division, instead getting recruited straight to the diamonds. Alicia Lukas captured it perfectly a few months ago when she said that I came from a division nobody cares about... and a lot of times it feels like she was dead on right. When I came up to the main roster, I did it with a chip on my shoulder and a hell of a lot to prove, and I approached the Diamonds with the convidence and bravado born of being the unstoppable force of nature I was known to be back in the day... and I don't need to tell you how that went. I won against Kate Steele, but since then I haven't won a match on my own power. I underestimated the drive, the determination, and the strength of the girls in the Division... and it cost me the chance to fight here in this ring."
She shakes her head and chuckles wryly, smiling at the empty arena. "I'd be lying if I said it didn't sting a little. Knowing what I lost. What I could have had. A lot of girls would think about going back to where they were the queens on the hill, where they know they can dominate and win... practically with impunity."
She leans on the top rope and looks out into the empty seats, a smile playing on her face. Slowly, in the background, a thrumming base not starts to grow.
"Screw those girls."
Astrid's entrance music begins to play.
"I didn't come here for easy wins. I didn't come here to be an unstoppable badass. I came here to fight. I came here to struggle. I came here to overcome. I came here for the challenge, and I'm getting exactly what I asked for - and I am NOT going away any time soon."
She turns back to the camera, broad smile on her face as she spreads her arms wide. "I'm here to stay. I'm not going to let my brothers and sisters in developmental down. I'm not going to let myself down. And I'm damn sure not going to let the Shield Wall down. Now that Night of the Immortals is behind us, it's a whole new year - and I'm going to fight like hell to make it mine. In a week on Monday Night Sacrifice, I'm going to stand against four other women in Glasgow - Sara Garcia, Crystal Miller, Lizzy Dalmon, and Alicia Lukas. Four women with storied careers both here in the IWF and beyond, all of them with a lot more victories under their belt than I do. Between the four of them there's enough accomplishments and accolades that I couldn't name them all if I had all day to try. They're four formidable women, and they've all proven that they deserve to be here beyond a shadow of a doubt."
Camera closes on her as Astrid leans forward, her smile carrying a bit more threat as her eyes harden with intense ferocity. "None of that matters. By this time next year, I guarantee that I won't be in this ring only after all the excitement passes. This time next year, I'll be fighting in Las Vegas at Night of the Immortals 2018, and walking away with a championship belt for my efforts. And those four girls are in my way.
It'll be a long road, and it'll be the hardest fight of my life to get there - but with the Shield Wall at my side, there's no challenge too great, no enemy too formidable, and no fight too dangerous to deter me... and I am never going to give up on my dream to show the world that I deserve to stand with the best - with the likes of Pandora Freeman and my friend Shae O'Hara.
Centuries ago, my ancestors went to Scotland with the intent to conquer, to win their prize with valor and steel. One week from now, history will repeat itself in Glasgow when I stand victorious over those four Diamonds, with the Shield Wall at my side."
Video fades to black as Astrid turns away from the camera, fist raised triumphantly in the air as she walks out of the ring as her theme song fades away.