The Wicked + The Divine
May 12, 2016 11:08:31 GMT -5
Post by Johnny Karma on May 12, 2016 11:08:31 GMT -5
Once more we return to the heart of Erin Mariani’s universe, and it is here where we find her laying on a chaise longue – quite the feat considering the pair of lace-up leather trousers she is wearing – and as we first catch a glimpse of her she takes a sip from a tumbler of chilled vodka before she places the glass on a nearby end table before she looks towards the camera and makes a show of folding her fingers together
I seem to recall hearing quite a few words about how myself and my partner were here to make up the numbers, about how we were…inferior. On the one hand we had Ryan LeCavalier looking past us, on the other we had Salem Cartier dismissing us. So I shall ask a question: where are they now?
Mariani looks directly at the camera, holding he hand palm-upwards to emphasise the question she is asking, allowing the silence to linger for that little bit too long to underline how there is no answer that anyone can give – and when the silence has become deafening, a devious smile crosses her lips
From where I am sitting, it would seem that the lost monarch has been lost forever, but the Queen has well and truly taken her place and her first act was to tie that witchy little nuisance to a stake and watch her burn.
Neither of them seemed to believe that the situation they were walking into a dangerous situation where one false move could lead to their swift demise. Take, for example, everything that Salem wanted to say about us, somehow believing at no point would she wish that she had kept her mouth shut. What was it that little girl said again?
Mariani drums her fingers against her thigh, creating a highly satisfying drumming sound as she thinks about the perfect example
Of course, you said we would have plenty of time to take in the sights and sounds of Louisville after you made quick work of us – or words to that effect, as the only way I could lower my level of class so I could sound remotely like Salem Cartier is if my childhood involved several cases of blunt force trauma to the head. On the one hand I shouldn’t blame her, as the silly little girl did not know better and was painfully ignorant of how her jabs would give us reason to take her head clean off her shoulders, but I should thank her for the amusement that she gave us.
I doubt, however, that LeCavalier will be quite so thankful towards her so-called friend, though. After all, she is the one who ended up paying the price, and in that split second where she realised her hopes and dreams were going to hell I sincerely hope she understood that her little friend is the reason it all happened, because while it would have been satisfying to put her in the ground and be done with it, it is so much more satisfying to know she could only watch on as her friend was destroyed and she was helpless to do anything to save her.
Mariani pauses for a second, before her index finger suddenly shoots up as she considers something else
What is so delicious is that myself and my partner played fair. We knew that the two of them had a history of injuries, and we said that our route to victory was to exploit those to our advantage, and yet even with this knowledge the pair of them never once thought to cover up those targets and that is how we defeated them. The arrogance that both displayed was most amusing for us, as not only did they dismiss us out of hand and think talking of their past was enough for a victory, but they assumed they were invulnerable to what we said we would do.
So thank you to Salem Cartier for giving us so much incentive to win with a flourish, and thank you for the tears you have no doubt shed. But from now on, you are nothing to us, so much so that I wouldn’t even give you the validation of allowing you to serve me like the puppet you always were.
With that being said Mariani reaches over to her glass of vodka and takes another sip, and once she has done so flicks the back of her hand in the camera’s direction to tell us to cut to black
We once again return to the Purple Café where we see Sara Mason indulging herself with another glass of Malbec as Mariani slides herself into the seat opposite before he wraps her fingers around the glass of single malt so she can take a soothing sip of finest scotch
So do you think that our last opponents are regretting what they said about us yet?
Personally I hope they regret everything they didn’t say, as they realise how foolish they looked talking about us as if we were not even there.
So true, so true…
With that, Mason takes another sip of her wine as she snickers under her breath
I trust you know about our next opponents?
You mean Dragons Unleashed?
Would I be talking about anybody else?
I don’t know, let me just check something…
Reaching forward, Mason daintily picks her phone off of the table before unlocking the screen with a swipe of her thumb before she does a quick online search, all while Mariani the nail of her index finger on the table due to her impatience at waiting for an answer – an answer which Mason, after a few more seconds of digging online, eventually gives her
Going by what I can find on their Twitter feeds, it doesn’t look like the two of them have started to bicker like a pair of schoolgirls just yet – but give it some time, as there’s a few more days for them to fall out all over again and give us a bye into the semi finals.
Hmm…
Mariani drums her fingers against her glass tumbler as she considers the last comment
I do have to wonder why two girls who have already split over something that was no doubt trivial were allowed into the tournament, yet we had to win a qualifier. Is it because they have friends in the right places, or did they get into the right position for their friends?
Leaning back with a knowing look on her face, Mariani takes an immensely satisfying sip of her scotch before she leans forward once again and places the tumbler on the table and runs her finger around the glass’ rim
But maybe, just maybe, the two of them will be doing everything in their power to prove to themselves that they can co-exist once again – and that is something which will take a lot of effort if it is all for show, so much effort in fact that it could distract them from the fact they are participating in a match, and I think anyone with an iota of common sense will know what happens to somebody who is forever distracted from their task in hand. After all, take a look over your shoulder at the waiter who is too scared to come within twelve feet of our table for…obvious reasons.
Giving a dismissive shrug, Mason sips on her wine without even bothering to look over her shoulder
Indeed I hope they are so focused on trying to keep things together, because that’s how we will get to see how determined they are to maintain the façade that every single drop of water has passed under the bridge, or whether the oil they think they have cast upon those troubled waters just needs a match before the whole thing burns.
I’m sure it will be in the back of both their minds that this is their one chance to prove they have moved on from whatever…unpleasantness tore them apart, so we shall see if that is what causes cracks to start appearing on the masks they both wear, or whether what causes them to fail has nothing whatsoever to do with whether they can or cannot co-exist, and more to do with how their attempts to reclaim the past are meaningless when they come face to face with the future, and as the last time we performed ably demonstrated, this is a future that does not start slow.
With that being said, Mariani picks up her tumbler once more to take a long, satisfying sip of the amber-coloured nectar within as she chuckles to herself
As their quarter final match against Dragons Unleashed grows ever closer, the door that separates the room from the balcony slides open and Mariani walks out with a look of disgust upon her face, and as she attempts to sample some air that may be classified as “clean” she looks out across Johnson City with a twinkle of bemusement in her eye
Is it really so hard for a hotel in this city, just one, to try that little bit harder and earn that fourth star? There is nothing that underlines just how pathetic this tiny little patch of dirt is than believing that three stars is all the luxury that anyone can handle. This is why nobody wants to come here unless they get paid for the so-called privilege, and believe me I am going to make damn sure that I am properly compensated for such…such…
Deprivation?
At this point Sara Mason walks through the door as she too looks out over the sights, sounds and smells of Johnson City – although the main sound she hears is Mariani’s approving hum
That word will certainly suffice.
As she shields her eyes from the sunlight, Mason approaches the handrail and peers over to see a couple of people walking the sidewalk outside the hotel, and when she sees them she lets out a disapproving grunt
You would have thought that somebody in this town would have realised that baseball caps are not the height of sartorial elegance by now, but apparently they have not. Ever since we got into town it’s all I have ever seen – a thousand checked shirts, a thousand pairs of Wranglers, a thousand baseball caps, half of them facing forward and half facing backward. It’s like they are wearing the international uniform of a moron.
Would it really be so difficult for this company to run shows in cities that matter? Nobody gives a shit about this dump in some Tennessee backwater or some Kentucky hellhole – why not drag this travelling circus in front of the eager eyes of civilisation? What’s wrong with holding shows in New York, or Chicago, or Boston, or Philadelphia? At least the arena floor won’t be slick with chewing tobacco and we’d hear something other than the crowd mooing because they have a hair in their ass about universal suffrage being a thing.
Looking down upon them, literally and figuratively, Mason curses under hear breath at just how scummy the people of Johnson City all appear to be – and how much they seem to revel in it
So what do you think?
Tapping a nail against the handrail for a moment, Mariani casts her eyes in the direction of Johnson City itself as she considers her answer
I’m thinking that we should prove to Johnson City just how inferior they are to us.
A few conspiratorial thoughts cross Mason’s mind
What are you suggesting?
Nothing like that, obviously. I have standards, plus I sincerely doubt that there is anyone in this city who is worth the time, let alone the effort.
No, what I am thinking is have every waste of skin that inhabits Johnson City watch as their petty prejudices corrode before them. You’ve seen it and I’ve seen it, when we walk past there are so many boys who look at us with a mixture of confusion and hunger. Hungry because they think that all it takes is a couple of sweet words and the offer of a drink and we’ll be compliant little subs for them because that is what they have been programmed to expect, yet on the other hand they are so confused as we are not all giggled and gingham skirts that are waiting to be pumped full of their rancid seed. This confusion will only lead to anger as they become frustrated at what they cannot have, let alone understand.
But I don’t want this cauldron of ignorance to simmer until it boils over into impotent rage, because their anger will be remembered. No, I want them to watch what their expectations of a few ladies playing wrestler for a few minutes so they can take a piss get well and truly destroyed. I want to feel the fear in the room as it slowly dawns on one ignorant mind after another that the little girl who has just returned from a serious injury is having that used against her and those cries of pain she is letting out come from the depths of her soul as her mind struggles to overcome her body telling her to give up – and when they are realising this, they will realise this is happening not just so we can win the match, because we want Evangelista to feel pain, we expect it, and we want to know what Laurel Anne hardy’s thoughts will be when she realises this reunion is costing her so-called best friend far more than she could comprehend.
More than that, though, more than anything, I am hoping there’s one or two souls in the crowd who will watch what is unfolding…and they won’t feel fear for what they are witnessing nor will they feel sympathy for that poor little girl who is getting broken one piece at a time, instead I want them to feel jealous because they realise just how inferior they are…and want to embrace it first-hand.
As soon as she finishes saying that, Mariani swats the back of her hand through the air, almost as if she is swatting that idea into oblivion
As if I would ever grant them the satisfaction.
A sly smile crosses Mariani’s lips as she considers her words and the future actions implied by them
Breaking an opponent or two is certainly appealing, but is that really the sum of our ambitions? Hurting a few opponents on the way to victory? I am sure we can do so much more than that. After all, where’s the fun in being expected to conform to the expectations of a bunch of hicks who thought they should fly the Confederate flag for 150 years after the fact? Let’s show them what a woman is capable of, knowing full well that the next time somebody gets that hungry look in their eye they will stop and think about whether those sweet words will lead them someplace they daren’t think of. That sounds a lot more like entertainment to me.
I seem to recall hearing quite a few words about how myself and my partner were here to make up the numbers, about how we were…inferior. On the one hand we had Ryan LeCavalier looking past us, on the other we had Salem Cartier dismissing us. So I shall ask a question: where are they now?
Mariani looks directly at the camera, holding he hand palm-upwards to emphasise the question she is asking, allowing the silence to linger for that little bit too long to underline how there is no answer that anyone can give – and when the silence has become deafening, a devious smile crosses her lips
From where I am sitting, it would seem that the lost monarch has been lost forever, but the Queen has well and truly taken her place and her first act was to tie that witchy little nuisance to a stake and watch her burn.
Neither of them seemed to believe that the situation they were walking into a dangerous situation where one false move could lead to their swift demise. Take, for example, everything that Salem wanted to say about us, somehow believing at no point would she wish that she had kept her mouth shut. What was it that little girl said again?
Mariani drums her fingers against her thigh, creating a highly satisfying drumming sound as she thinks about the perfect example
Of course, you said we would have plenty of time to take in the sights and sounds of Louisville after you made quick work of us – or words to that effect, as the only way I could lower my level of class so I could sound remotely like Salem Cartier is if my childhood involved several cases of blunt force trauma to the head. On the one hand I shouldn’t blame her, as the silly little girl did not know better and was painfully ignorant of how her jabs would give us reason to take her head clean off her shoulders, but I should thank her for the amusement that she gave us.
I doubt, however, that LeCavalier will be quite so thankful towards her so-called friend, though. After all, she is the one who ended up paying the price, and in that split second where she realised her hopes and dreams were going to hell I sincerely hope she understood that her little friend is the reason it all happened, because while it would have been satisfying to put her in the ground and be done with it, it is so much more satisfying to know she could only watch on as her friend was destroyed and she was helpless to do anything to save her.
Mariani pauses for a second, before her index finger suddenly shoots up as she considers something else
What is so delicious is that myself and my partner played fair. We knew that the two of them had a history of injuries, and we said that our route to victory was to exploit those to our advantage, and yet even with this knowledge the pair of them never once thought to cover up those targets and that is how we defeated them. The arrogance that both displayed was most amusing for us, as not only did they dismiss us out of hand and think talking of their past was enough for a victory, but they assumed they were invulnerable to what we said we would do.
So thank you to Salem Cartier for giving us so much incentive to win with a flourish, and thank you for the tears you have no doubt shed. But from now on, you are nothing to us, so much so that I wouldn’t even give you the validation of allowing you to serve me like the puppet you always were.
With that being said Mariani reaches over to her glass of vodka and takes another sip, and once she has done so flicks the back of her hand in the camera’s direction to tell us to cut to black
~ ~ ~
We once again return to the Purple Café where we see Sara Mason indulging herself with another glass of Malbec as Mariani slides herself into the seat opposite before he wraps her fingers around the glass of single malt so she can take a soothing sip of finest scotch
So do you think that our last opponents are regretting what they said about us yet?
Personally I hope they regret everything they didn’t say, as they realise how foolish they looked talking about us as if we were not even there.
So true, so true…
With that, Mason takes another sip of her wine as she snickers under her breath
I trust you know about our next opponents?
You mean Dragons Unleashed?
Would I be talking about anybody else?
I don’t know, let me just check something…
Reaching forward, Mason daintily picks her phone off of the table before unlocking the screen with a swipe of her thumb before she does a quick online search, all while Mariani the nail of her index finger on the table due to her impatience at waiting for an answer – an answer which Mason, after a few more seconds of digging online, eventually gives her
Going by what I can find on their Twitter feeds, it doesn’t look like the two of them have started to bicker like a pair of schoolgirls just yet – but give it some time, as there’s a few more days for them to fall out all over again and give us a bye into the semi finals.
Hmm…
Mariani drums her fingers against her glass tumbler as she considers the last comment
I do have to wonder why two girls who have already split over something that was no doubt trivial were allowed into the tournament, yet we had to win a qualifier. Is it because they have friends in the right places, or did they get into the right position for their friends?
Leaning back with a knowing look on her face, Mariani takes an immensely satisfying sip of her scotch before she leans forward once again and places the tumbler on the table and runs her finger around the glass’ rim
But maybe, just maybe, the two of them will be doing everything in their power to prove to themselves that they can co-exist once again – and that is something which will take a lot of effort if it is all for show, so much effort in fact that it could distract them from the fact they are participating in a match, and I think anyone with an iota of common sense will know what happens to somebody who is forever distracted from their task in hand. After all, take a look over your shoulder at the waiter who is too scared to come within twelve feet of our table for…obvious reasons.
Giving a dismissive shrug, Mason sips on her wine without even bothering to look over her shoulder
Indeed I hope they are so focused on trying to keep things together, because that’s how we will get to see how determined they are to maintain the façade that every single drop of water has passed under the bridge, or whether the oil they think they have cast upon those troubled waters just needs a match before the whole thing burns.
I’m sure it will be in the back of both their minds that this is their one chance to prove they have moved on from whatever…unpleasantness tore them apart, so we shall see if that is what causes cracks to start appearing on the masks they both wear, or whether what causes them to fail has nothing whatsoever to do with whether they can or cannot co-exist, and more to do with how their attempts to reclaim the past are meaningless when they come face to face with the future, and as the last time we performed ably demonstrated, this is a future that does not start slow.
With that being said, Mariani picks up her tumbler once more to take a long, satisfying sip of the amber-coloured nectar within as she chuckles to herself
~ ~ ~
As their quarter final match against Dragons Unleashed grows ever closer, the door that separates the room from the balcony slides open and Mariani walks out with a look of disgust upon her face, and as she attempts to sample some air that may be classified as “clean” she looks out across Johnson City with a twinkle of bemusement in her eye
Is it really so hard for a hotel in this city, just one, to try that little bit harder and earn that fourth star? There is nothing that underlines just how pathetic this tiny little patch of dirt is than believing that three stars is all the luxury that anyone can handle. This is why nobody wants to come here unless they get paid for the so-called privilege, and believe me I am going to make damn sure that I am properly compensated for such…such…
Deprivation?
At this point Sara Mason walks through the door as she too looks out over the sights, sounds and smells of Johnson City – although the main sound she hears is Mariani’s approving hum
That word will certainly suffice.
As she shields her eyes from the sunlight, Mason approaches the handrail and peers over to see a couple of people walking the sidewalk outside the hotel, and when she sees them she lets out a disapproving grunt
You would have thought that somebody in this town would have realised that baseball caps are not the height of sartorial elegance by now, but apparently they have not. Ever since we got into town it’s all I have ever seen – a thousand checked shirts, a thousand pairs of Wranglers, a thousand baseball caps, half of them facing forward and half facing backward. It’s like they are wearing the international uniform of a moron.
Would it really be so difficult for this company to run shows in cities that matter? Nobody gives a shit about this dump in some Tennessee backwater or some Kentucky hellhole – why not drag this travelling circus in front of the eager eyes of civilisation? What’s wrong with holding shows in New York, or Chicago, or Boston, or Philadelphia? At least the arena floor won’t be slick with chewing tobacco and we’d hear something other than the crowd mooing because they have a hair in their ass about universal suffrage being a thing.
Looking down upon them, literally and figuratively, Mason curses under hear breath at just how scummy the people of Johnson City all appear to be – and how much they seem to revel in it
So what do you think?
Tapping a nail against the handrail for a moment, Mariani casts her eyes in the direction of Johnson City itself as she considers her answer
I’m thinking that we should prove to Johnson City just how inferior they are to us.
A few conspiratorial thoughts cross Mason’s mind
What are you suggesting?
Nothing like that, obviously. I have standards, plus I sincerely doubt that there is anyone in this city who is worth the time, let alone the effort.
No, what I am thinking is have every waste of skin that inhabits Johnson City watch as their petty prejudices corrode before them. You’ve seen it and I’ve seen it, when we walk past there are so many boys who look at us with a mixture of confusion and hunger. Hungry because they think that all it takes is a couple of sweet words and the offer of a drink and we’ll be compliant little subs for them because that is what they have been programmed to expect, yet on the other hand they are so confused as we are not all giggled and gingham skirts that are waiting to be pumped full of their rancid seed. This confusion will only lead to anger as they become frustrated at what they cannot have, let alone understand.
But I don’t want this cauldron of ignorance to simmer until it boils over into impotent rage, because their anger will be remembered. No, I want them to watch what their expectations of a few ladies playing wrestler for a few minutes so they can take a piss get well and truly destroyed. I want to feel the fear in the room as it slowly dawns on one ignorant mind after another that the little girl who has just returned from a serious injury is having that used against her and those cries of pain she is letting out come from the depths of her soul as her mind struggles to overcome her body telling her to give up – and when they are realising this, they will realise this is happening not just so we can win the match, because we want Evangelista to feel pain, we expect it, and we want to know what Laurel Anne hardy’s thoughts will be when she realises this reunion is costing her so-called best friend far more than she could comprehend.
More than that, though, more than anything, I am hoping there’s one or two souls in the crowd who will watch what is unfolding…and they won’t feel fear for what they are witnessing nor will they feel sympathy for that poor little girl who is getting broken one piece at a time, instead I want them to feel jealous because they realise just how inferior they are…and want to embrace it first-hand.
As soon as she finishes saying that, Mariani swats the back of her hand through the air, almost as if she is swatting that idea into oblivion
As if I would ever grant them the satisfaction.
A sly smile crosses Mariani’s lips as she considers her words and the future actions implied by them
Breaking an opponent or two is certainly appealing, but is that really the sum of our ambitions? Hurting a few opponents on the way to victory? I am sure we can do so much more than that. After all, where’s the fun in being expected to conform to the expectations of a bunch of hicks who thought they should fly the Confederate flag for 150 years after the fact? Let’s show them what a woman is capable of, knowing full well that the next time somebody gets that hungry look in their eye they will stop and think about whether those sweet words will lead them someplace they daren’t think of. That sounds a lot more like entertainment to me.
