Post by Teo Blaze on Apr 10, 2016 12:48:06 GMT -5
The scene opens with a blinding flash of white light, overwhelming the viewer and swallowing the entire screen. The light is blinding, almost audibly bright, as though a nuclear explosion has gone off- but slowly it fades, and the scene opens up onto a blinding white-hot ball of fire, the sun, beating down on the orange sands of the Mexican desert.
The camera slowly fades over various shots, a cactus flower delicately fluttering in a summer breeze, a lizard skittering over a rock, looking for a place to shade itself from the unforgiving heat, and finally, on a small pond- it would not be fair to call it an oasis, as the body of water is barely large enough to be called a pond.
The water had been somewhat of a local legend, the pond would fill every day after a rainstorm, and slowly drain away as the heat blasted against it. Some speculated that the rain would come when the pond was empty, yet none ever bothered to measure it.
It was only a local legend after all, there was no need to take the magic out of it.
And seated at the edge of this humble body of water, legs crossed, eyes closed, deep in thought, is the People’s Champion, Teo del Sol. The luchador’s body is uncovered, not truly fit for a trip through the desert, yet without the shirt on his back, far more becomes clear. There are deep scars, jagged tears across his back from attacks with every kind of weapon. Deep red bruises mark his arms and legs, and callouses mar what may have once been perfectly normal hands- the result of years of training. His skin is like leather, and covered in perspiration from the desert heat. Oh that he could crawl to shade like one of the countless reptiles…and yet that was not his purpose.
Folded neatly at his side are a pile of clothes, and on top rests the freshly designed People’s Championship. He had commissioned it specifically for the upcoming match- the design was reminiscent of the original belt, but the colors were far more vibrant. More alive. The belt was once black with silver, and while he respected its legacy, the color black was not something that he wished to carry with him. Black was the color of pain, of anguish, of agony…
Of death.
Teo sighs to himself, letting the word death hang in his mind far longer than he should, before finally, eyes still shut, he opens his mouth to speak.
Teo: Why won’t you come? You came last time.
Teo sighed in frustration. The visions had been haunting him for months- spirits of past enemies, champions, even his own worst fears laid bare before him…and yet now, when he most desired to speak to one of them, they had vanished.
Teo: Crow… I need to talk to you.
It was absurd, really. Teo knew that Crow was long gone… that he had gone out against one of the most dangerous opponents without a moment’s hesitation, and fought until the last breath of life passed from his body.
He had given his life rather than surrender.
And Teo had watched it happen. The greatest People’s Champion that WCF would ever see, one of the brightest flames that had ever burned under the banner, snuffed out in one instant. Never to be lit again.
Crow had come to him once before…well, something had. It had taken his form at least. Teo had demanded the vision leave him then, yet now he found himself wishing he had it back.
Though it had left that night at the hospital, it had retreated back into his mind. Now even as he sat on the desert floor…somewhere deep inside his head, that vision was pressing buttons, crossing wires. Reminding him that he would never get the chance to tell Scarecrow how much he had looked up to him, how much he had admired what Scarecrow accomplished with this belt.
And that if Teo kept on winning, he would eclipse Scarecrow’s record.
On some level, he kept waiting for the person who would come and take it away. The person who would tell him he did a good job keeping it warm, that it was time for the real champion to return. No matter what he had done, that nagging feeling was there, that feeling that it could never be good enough.
: And that’s what you want? Validation?
Teo’s eyes flew open as he looked towards the pond, and though he expected someone to be sitting there, fully believed that there would be a figure resting atop the water’s surface, he was met only with the empty desert and the lonely pond.
Teo: Who’s there? Show yourself.
: Nah. The metaphors are getting kind of old, anyway. You’re not as scared as you used to be. Not as malleable.
Teo: What’s that supposed to mean?
: What does it sound like, Teo? Come on. You should know that David Sanchez doesn’t really come to you on command, nor Dune, not even your little hero, Scarecrow.
Teo: Don’t you dare-
: Don’t I dare? Why Teo, don’t you get it? After all this time? Let me spell it out for you.
I am you.
You can put on that mask of yours, you can pretend that you’re a superhero, but when you really get right down to it, you know as well as I do that you’re still Teddy Blaze, that you’re still that loser who couldn’t even win a championship in a local indy show.
Teo: Shut up!
: Touched a nerve, have I? Look here, Teo del Sol might be on the verge of accomplishing an earth shattering, boundary defying, impossible task, and I personally hope that you do by the way, but let’s face it, those fans out there? They are just waiting for someone better to come along.
Teo: You’re full of crap.
: Believe what you want to believe. But you know it’s true. These people are barracudas. Piranha. You lose Sunday, and that’s it. The people will drop you like a bad habit and move onto their new hero.
Teo: Shut! UP!
Teo jumps to his feet and throws a punch as hard as he can, though with no one there to hit, he stumbles forward and falls face first into the blue water of the pond. He stumbles end over end as he tries to right himself, but even as he struggles, a realization comes over him.
There, underneath the clear waters of the Mexican desert, there is only silence.
He stops struggling, relaxing, still plenty of air, and slowly turns himself towards the surface of the water.
There, through the shimmering surface, he sees that white hot ball of fire, that beautiful orb, that life-giving ball of fire that makes it possible to wake up every day.
And in that brief moment, Teo had a realization.
The world is covered in darkness. Left on its own it would fester- thieves would steal, thugs would kill, and plants would die. There would be nothing but a million voices calling out in the darkness, all clawing at one another, all trying only to survive, even if the only means of survival was destruction.
But that was not how it was.
The world did not have to live in darkness. Though it pervades every aspect of life, from the most diabolical and monstrous humans to the stray souls who are but a step away from the wrong path…and yet that darkness was every day, without exception, extinguished by the sun.
Darkness was everywhere. In every closet, in every shadow, in every person…but so was light.
Light is there to guide one back to peace.
Light is there to illuminate the good.
Light is there to remind people that shadows do not rule.
WCF was a company shrouded in darkness, in death and decay. Every week there would be violence, hatred, rage- and even worse…But so long as there were those who could carry that light.
Who could carry that reminder that the world is not all darkness…
There was hope.
When Pandora’s box was opened, and all the demons and negative creatures flew out to inhabit the world, there was still hope.
For now, more than anything else, more than even being the People’s Champion…
Teo del Sol was that hope.
And he had a match to win.
The camera slowly fades over various shots, a cactus flower delicately fluttering in a summer breeze, a lizard skittering over a rock, looking for a place to shade itself from the unforgiving heat, and finally, on a small pond- it would not be fair to call it an oasis, as the body of water is barely large enough to be called a pond.
The water had been somewhat of a local legend, the pond would fill every day after a rainstorm, and slowly drain away as the heat blasted against it. Some speculated that the rain would come when the pond was empty, yet none ever bothered to measure it.
It was only a local legend after all, there was no need to take the magic out of it.
And seated at the edge of this humble body of water, legs crossed, eyes closed, deep in thought, is the People’s Champion, Teo del Sol. The luchador’s body is uncovered, not truly fit for a trip through the desert, yet without the shirt on his back, far more becomes clear. There are deep scars, jagged tears across his back from attacks with every kind of weapon. Deep red bruises mark his arms and legs, and callouses mar what may have once been perfectly normal hands- the result of years of training. His skin is like leather, and covered in perspiration from the desert heat. Oh that he could crawl to shade like one of the countless reptiles…and yet that was not his purpose.
Folded neatly at his side are a pile of clothes, and on top rests the freshly designed People’s Championship. He had commissioned it specifically for the upcoming match- the design was reminiscent of the original belt, but the colors were far more vibrant. More alive. The belt was once black with silver, and while he respected its legacy, the color black was not something that he wished to carry with him. Black was the color of pain, of anguish, of agony…
Of death.
Teo sighs to himself, letting the word death hang in his mind far longer than he should, before finally, eyes still shut, he opens his mouth to speak.
Teo: Why won’t you come? You came last time.
Teo sighed in frustration. The visions had been haunting him for months- spirits of past enemies, champions, even his own worst fears laid bare before him…and yet now, when he most desired to speak to one of them, they had vanished.
Teo: Crow… I need to talk to you.
It was absurd, really. Teo knew that Crow was long gone… that he had gone out against one of the most dangerous opponents without a moment’s hesitation, and fought until the last breath of life passed from his body.
He had given his life rather than surrender.
And Teo had watched it happen. The greatest People’s Champion that WCF would ever see, one of the brightest flames that had ever burned under the banner, snuffed out in one instant. Never to be lit again.
Crow had come to him once before…well, something had. It had taken his form at least. Teo had demanded the vision leave him then, yet now he found himself wishing he had it back.
Though it had left that night at the hospital, it had retreated back into his mind. Now even as he sat on the desert floor…somewhere deep inside his head, that vision was pressing buttons, crossing wires. Reminding him that he would never get the chance to tell Scarecrow how much he had looked up to him, how much he had admired what Scarecrow accomplished with this belt.
And that if Teo kept on winning, he would eclipse Scarecrow’s record.
On some level, he kept waiting for the person who would come and take it away. The person who would tell him he did a good job keeping it warm, that it was time for the real champion to return. No matter what he had done, that nagging feeling was there, that feeling that it could never be good enough.
: And that’s what you want? Validation?Teo’s eyes flew open as he looked towards the pond, and though he expected someone to be sitting there, fully believed that there would be a figure resting atop the water’s surface, he was met only with the empty desert and the lonely pond.
Teo: Who’s there? Show yourself.
: Nah. The metaphors are getting kind of old, anyway. You’re not as scared as you used to be. Not as malleable.Teo: What’s that supposed to mean?
: What does it sound like, Teo? Come on. You should know that David Sanchez doesn’t really come to you on command, nor Dune, not even your little hero, Scarecrow.Teo: Don’t you dare-
: Don’t I dare? Why Teo, don’t you get it? After all this time? Let me spell it out for you.I am you.
You can put on that mask of yours, you can pretend that you’re a superhero, but when you really get right down to it, you know as well as I do that you’re still Teddy Blaze, that you’re still that loser who couldn’t even win a championship in a local indy show.
Teo: Shut up!
: Touched a nerve, have I? Look here, Teo del Sol might be on the verge of accomplishing an earth shattering, boundary defying, impossible task, and I personally hope that you do by the way, but let’s face it, those fans out there? They are just waiting for someone better to come along.Teo: You’re full of crap.
: Believe what you want to believe. But you know it’s true. These people are barracudas. Piranha. You lose Sunday, and that’s it. The people will drop you like a bad habit and move onto their new hero.Teo: Shut! UP!
Teo jumps to his feet and throws a punch as hard as he can, though with no one there to hit, he stumbles forward and falls face first into the blue water of the pond. He stumbles end over end as he tries to right himself, but even as he struggles, a realization comes over him.
There, underneath the clear waters of the Mexican desert, there is only silence.
He stops struggling, relaxing, still plenty of air, and slowly turns himself towards the surface of the water.
There, through the shimmering surface, he sees that white hot ball of fire, that beautiful orb, that life-giving ball of fire that makes it possible to wake up every day.
And in that brief moment, Teo had a realization.
The world is covered in darkness. Left on its own it would fester- thieves would steal, thugs would kill, and plants would die. There would be nothing but a million voices calling out in the darkness, all clawing at one another, all trying only to survive, even if the only means of survival was destruction.
But that was not how it was.
The world did not have to live in darkness. Though it pervades every aspect of life, from the most diabolical and monstrous humans to the stray souls who are but a step away from the wrong path…and yet that darkness was every day, without exception, extinguished by the sun.
Darkness was everywhere. In every closet, in every shadow, in every person…but so was light.
Light is there to guide one back to peace.
Light is there to illuminate the good.
Light is there to remind people that shadows do not rule.
WCF was a company shrouded in darkness, in death and decay. Every week there would be violence, hatred, rage- and even worse…But so long as there were those who could carry that light.
Who could carry that reminder that the world is not all darkness…
There was hope.
When Pandora’s box was opened, and all the demons and negative creatures flew out to inhabit the world, there was still hope.
For now, more than anything else, more than even being the People’s Champion…
Teo del Sol was that hope.
And he had a match to win.
