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| Living in the Shadows; pt. 4 | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Mar 4 2018, 10:31 AM (45 Views) | |
| Matt Mendez | Mar 4 2018, 10:31 AM Post #1 |
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Newbie
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Jersey City, New Jersey The roar of a crowd fills up the small venue in the middle of the city. The crimson brick walls contrast with the dim yellow that the light bulbs produce. Grey pipes run up and down on the ceiling, a ceiling that seems like could create problems for those high-flying wrestlers that you might be used to see on your televisions each week. The fans gulp their massive sized sodas or some beers with a bag of yellowish popcorn, some nachos covered with nuclear yellow cheese or greasy hot dogs. Then, there I stand. In the middle of this crowd, watching as some skinny masked dude named ARCADE battles one of my teachers, Violent Max. New Jersey Extreme Wrestling, or NJXW for the initiated, was the place it all started for me. Back when I was just an angry kid looking for a place to release all my anger and frustrations with the world. Back when I didn’t know the difference between a headlock and a hammer lock. Back when wrestling was just a spectacle I saw on TV. The first time I saw the crimson bricks of this venue, I didn’t know what to expect. The ring post looked rusty, as they do now; the ropes were stiff as electric tensors; the mat was stained with blood that had been spilled God knows when; sufficient to say I thought it was the worst idea I’ve ever had in my life… but when I turned around, trying to get away from the horror scene that was this rat hole in the middle of Jersey City, he appeared. His multicolored hair, one he acquired naturally by working on the sea for the majority of his life, a complete mess; his beard groomed and tied up with a rubber band; the gaze of a mad man that has seen almost everything in his life and a very worn black t-shirt that spelled Violent Max in white. He stopped that scrawny little guy that was me at the time and asked “why I was running away”. I stuttered some sounds that in my head sounded like words, but his eyes told me a different story. Then I composed and told him that “I wasn’t running, I was simply lurking and now I was to move on.” He obviously didn’t bite that, he didn’t ask why I was getting away from the venue, he knew better. A scrawny 18 year old with a lot of anger in his eyes, walking alone in Jersey, something was up and he knew it, so he asked again “Why are you running away?” I froze, before I stuttered the word “Hate”. Tonight, he was facing the man that replaced me within the roster. ARCADE reminded me a lot of myself. Scrawny, skinny, and green as hell. With each thunderous chop Max landed on his bare chest, I was reminded of those he landed on myself when I began training under his wing. Those days, were some of the harshest days in my life. For all the shit Max has gotten on his life, the dude knows how to wrestle; but more importantly at that time, he knew how to teach it. ARCADE launched Max to the outside, right to where I was standing. My eyes and Max’s landed on each other and a smirk drew on both of our faces; before ARCADE launched himself with a Suicide Dive towards both of us. As ARCADE, Max and I were laying there on the floor, I remembered my first dive on this very venue… I almost killed myself. The match continued and ARCADE scored a victory over Max. The crowd cheered the newcomer and the lights went off, as the show ended. The fans gathered on the sidewalk, talking about the show; talking about how crazy some of the spots in earlier matches were; as I stood there trying not to get recognized as I smoked a cigarette. The sound of their voices began to fade away as the hordes of fans began moving in different directions, just as light snow began to fall over my head. Max and ARCADE made their way out of the venue and Max, as usual, was giving some pointers to the new guy about what to do and what not to do the next time. I smiled as I threw the cigarette to the ground and stomped it with my heavy black boot. I tucked both of my hands inside the pockets of the black hoodie I was wearing and walked towards them. Matt Mendez: “Hey, asshole…” The sound of my voice made Max stop in his track. The massive man turned around with a big fucking smile on his face before he slapped me right in the middle of the chest and gave me a huge hug. Violent Max: “The fuck have you been? Ye’ moron!” I snorted before striking my nose with the knuckles of my right hand. The smile on Max’s face was one I never thought I would see in my life. Yes, I had seen him smirk, but never smile. Matt: “You know, trying to appease my demons.” Max looked at me and shook his head, just before he presented ARCADE to me. Max: “Youn’ one… this is the infamous Matt Mendez.” The young ARCADE extended his hand and greeted me, like he knew all my life’s story. Max was proud of me, for whatever reason. He considered me the “crown jewel” of NJXW, the one who made it out of this hell hole; he wanted everyone to know my story, especially those who, like me, just stumbled their way into the industry. Max: “So, Matt… are ye’ goin’ to Delaware next weeken’?” NJXW had a tradition of holding a Deathmatch Classic every year. Ever since extreme wrestling was regulated within the state of New Jersey, they traveled to Delaware, one of the few states that still allowed that type of matches, to do their Classic. Every year I made it there, I won the tournament once and twice came in second place. Deathmatch wrestling was somehow liberating for me. But it wasn’t an easy start. Matt: “I mean, never say never.” A complicit smile appeared on my face, Max knew my desire of being there. He knew how liberating it was when I started to get the hang of deathmatches; but he also knew how hard it was the first time I had to cut myself in a match. As with the wrestling side of things, Max was the one who brought me up into the deathmatch scene. He saw me growing as a performer and asked if I was willing to do it, that scrawny but brash son of a bitch that was living within me said yes. Boy, did I ever made a mistake in my life. My first proper deathmatch was against a guy named Brody Butcher, may his soul rest in power… and the guy almost murdered me that night. I was bleeding all over the place, to the point they had to throw water with a hose at me just to get the blood cleared for the medics to stitch me up. That same motherfucker was the one I faced on my first final of the Deathmatch Classic; and he beat me again. Next year I made it to the finals again, but I lost to a guy named Trent Daemer. Then, just last year, I made it back to the finals and I defeated Violent Max to earn the trophy. I think the fact I signed “big time” with Vengeance Pro broke Max’s heart a little. I feel he envisioned NJXW making it out of the shadows riding on my back, just as I made it out of my own shadows… but it wasn’t meant to be. I needed to erase a demon from my life in order to become that “crown jewel” he has always seen in me. Anyways, I asked him if I could stay in the venue for a bit. Max smiled and handed me the keys. Max: “Don’t fuckin’ break anythin’ ‘k!” Not that there was much left to be broken inside, but I got the rib. I made my way back to the place where the ring was and put the lights back on. They flickered, flashes of blue and white came out of them; before they went their usual yellow. I slowly made my way to the ring, with each step I took, I remembered why I started doing this; why I became “The Rogue” that I am today… why I’m that rabid animal my brother warns everyone I am. Once I made it inside the ring, I took a deep breath, before I looked directly at the emptiness of the venue. Where a crowd of maybe a hundred and change gathered mere hours before; there was only darkness. Where blood was spill and the crowd roared, there was only silence. Where I became a wrestler, there was only memories. “This is it!” I exclaimed. “The place where I became what I am today. The rabid animal that needs to be in a cage. The rogue that needs to be apprehended. This, my brother… is where I met my family.” A smirk drew on my face as I continued. “You see, the monster you see in Vengeance… that monster you keep poking with each and every single motherfucking move you pull out of your ball sack… was created by YOU… and sharpened in this very ring.” I hit the mat hard with my boot, before I closed my eyes and continued. “People want to know what makes me so dangerous… HATE… hate is what makes me dangerous.” As I took a deep breath, the sound of a drop of water falling against the concrete floor of this place, echoed on the empty venue. “Hate that you helped fuel all along. Hate that you keep fueling every single god dammed week.” I ran my hand over the top rope, burning it a bit in the process before I stopped and hit the top turnbuckle with that same hand. “It’s one thing to poke me. It’s one thing to put me in matches that are deemed too much to handle. It’s one thing to pull your stupid power stunts ON ME… a whole ‘nother thing is to pull them on Abbie.” My body shook as I mentioned her name, everything my brother has done to Abbie came rushing to my consciousness. “I can handle your bullshit, Mateo… I’ve handled it all my fucking life. But, you really need to be so petty that you go after someone who has not a single fucking thing to do with anything? Do you really need to steep so low?” A chuckle escapes me. “Then, you allow chaos to happen last week. For what? Pettiness? What was the necessity of allowing that shit to happen? You want war? You want chaos?... you could’ve saved yourself the hassle and just let me know that’s what you wanted…. Because I can give you a fucking War… I can give you fucking Chaos.” I smiled as I grabbed the top rope and looked directly at the camera. “You want your chosen ones to showcase their skills to the world? Well, brother… you better watch your back… because while everyone wages war on Pride… I’ll be imploding the ivory tower where your ass is sitting.” A wide smile appears on my face as I speak. “Mateo, Vengeance… welcome to my playground.” I tap the top rope making it shake as I look up at the ceiling covered in pipes, before the scene fades to black. |
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