OOC: The following takes place immediately after Kate's win in the triple threat match against Knightmask and Ann Thraxx.
IC:
The bell rings indicating Kate's pinfall victory. Kate raises above the defeated body of Ann Thraxx with her arms raised in a V. Knightmask shakes his head in disappointment. Kate looks at him knowing that the masked man is realizing his folly of attempting a top turnbuckle move and leaving Kate with the opportunity to pin Ann. She grins at him childishly an sticks her tongue out in a mocking then follows it up with a blunt middle finger. The crowd cheers at her antics. Kate takes a moment to look at the unconscious Ann Thraxx she makes a curious face and steps away from the body of the face up woman. To the front row crowd it seems as if Kate might be feeling some remorse for the brutality she inflicted during the match. But that appearance quickly fades as she raises her hands and let's out a victorious 'whoo!' as Monochromatic Stains by Dark Tranquility blares over the X-Tron.
Obviously filled with enthusiasm her victory walk to backstage turns into a sprint as she disappears into the backstage area. As she makes her way she bumps into a couple large men, likely other wrestlers who have a look in their eyes of mission and purpose.
"Kate!!" a voice calls from the waiting area. Kate recognizes it and runs faster. As she runs she overhears a couple of the big men screaming. "Get that bitch Ann Thraxx!... Kill her!"
Kate rounds the last corner and right before her is Nurse Browne running towards her arms open for an embrace.
"Sweetheart! you did it!"
Kate embraces the nurse
"I did it!" Kate screamed and squeezed her tightly. "I can barely believe it!"
"Yes you did!" the nurse replied. "Have confidence dear, I knew you could!"
the nurse released Kate and took a step back.
"Honey, your nose!" Nurse Browne said.
"I know. I can't breathe through it. I think it might be broken."
"Indeed, there's a lot of blood and it looks pretty crushed."
"That bitch." Kate commented. "And Knightmask hit my lower ribs with his stupid visor when he speared me. Like what is that think even for? It's practically a weapon in itself. Who's he think he is? The friggin X-Men? I mean grow up!"
"Let's go find somewhere and talk, Kate." Nurse Brown suggested.
The two began to walk deeper into the backstage area, Kate chugging a bottled water as they walked. They continued until they stopped at a few benches and table with snacks and water bottles.
Kate snagged another water bottle and said, "So what's up?"
The nurse smiles and removes a cigarette from a half empty pack, she lights it and takes a deep drag. "I want to talk about you and I."
"Holy shit, lady, you smoke way too much." Kate said while waving her hand through wafts of cigarette smoke.
"There's no consequences for me here. I my world I smoke a lot less, but here I can just smoke as much as I want. For me its great. Sorry if it bugs you, if you sit down, you won't smell a thing."
As if on cue a large industrial fan kicked on above the two women, sucking the smoke up and away from the immediate area.
"How did you know, did you turn that on?" Kate asked in amazement.
"Kate, honey, I am authoring this story as we speak. I control everything."
"Yeah well, how about some booze?" Kate replied incredulously.
"It's in the mini fridge behind the waters."
"Bullshit! They don't stock booze for the wrestlers OR the set up team!"
"Check it, if you don't believe me. There's a bin full of ice in the small room over there. You can pour yourself a drink but we know you're just going to drink from the bottle."
Kate got up and went to the mini fridge and opened it. Only to find rows f water bottles.She looked at the nurse and her face said 'told you so!'
"It's in the far back, bottom shelf." the nurse said with confidence while she ashed her cigarette on the floor.
Kate continued to rifle through the fridge until at last she found a small bottle of scotch.Immediately she opened the bottle and began to chug the alcohol down while she returned to her seat.
"You put that there!" Kate said as she paused between guzzling the hard liquor
"I may have, but how did I know you'd ask for it?I told you I write this shit, I know your every move before you do it."
"So you're what, God?"
"We've done this but I guess we're doing it again. In a way I am YOUR specific god. I have limited control over events in this world, but as far as you're concerned, I have total control. Think of it as I'm a writer and you're a character in a story."
"This is bullshit. You're getting weirder by the day."
The nurse took another drag from her cigarette and exhaled the smoke as she spoke. "You want to ask if you have any control over your life. If free will even exists. In a way it does. For you to be a character, you need to have certain independent elements I can not directly control. You have to be you. If you prefer scotch to whiskey, I can't change that. well not directly. It's just who you are. You're a tenacious fighter, Kate, I don't control your every move, that is all you. With my power I can not contradict your character. If you, for example were addicted to crack. I couldn't make you get clean. That choice has to come from deep within your character."
Kate nodded and finished the small bottle of scotch with a massive gulp. Nurse Browne took another drag from her cigarette, exhaled through her nose and stubbed it out on the nearby table. Almost immediately she took out another and lit it.
"So if you're some powerful god writer thing, who are you really? To me, you look like my caretaker Christine Browne. But you're really not her are you?" Kate said while switching fluids to water again.
"I'm not some deity floating in the sky or living in a heaven. I inhabit a world that is very much like this one. In fact it is hardly a heaven at all, it's quite imperfect."
"Can you tell me about your world?"
"I guess, but I can't give out too much information. So I'll give you the basics." the nurse took a long drag from her cigarette and held the smoke in for a minute while she thought to herself. Finally a look crossed her face that indicated she'd decided what information she was going to devulge. She exhaled a faint, thin stream of smoke and spoke, "I am a twenty-something woman in my world, very average looking. My name is Andrea and I study sculpture at an Art School in San Francisco. In my free time I read and write my character's lives."
"Right." Kate replied. "Can I bum a cigarette? This shit is too weird."
The nurse handed Kate a cigarette and the lighter. "You're not going to like smoking with a broken nose. So before you just step on it after you realize this, don't waste a good cigarette and just give it back to me and I'll finish it."
"Oh....Kay" Kate said and shrugged her shoulders. "So what do I call you? God Lord, Yahweh, Savior, creator, Allah?"
The nurse laughs as she exhales the smoke. "No, no, no. Lwt's not make this ridiculous. The nurse's name Is Christine, and that a very pretty name, so call me Christine, or if you feel so inclined, call me Andrea."
"Ok, Christine works for me. Even though, you're not the real Christine Browne, who is going to be pissed when she finds out how bad you've fucked up her lungs with your pack a day habit."
"At this point it's getting closer to a two pack a day habit. I don't get any cigarette fatigue here and I have plenty of cash, so no reason to cut back. and When the 'real' Christine Browne get's her body back it will be as good as new, she'll probably live to 100."
"If you say so, You're right about smoking with as busted nose, here, take it." Kate hands the nearly unsmoked cigarette back to Christine. "Speaking of which, can you fix my nose?"
"Sorry but no. It's kind of against the rules for this world. You're going to have to go to the hospital. We'll go when we're done here."
"What do we have left to talk about?" Kate asked.
"Your performance in the ring tonight and your upcoming match on Saturday."
"Ok, well, let's talk about today, Next week is pointless, the card hasn't even been posted yet." Kate said.
The nurse stubbed out one of the two cigarettes she was smoking and turned on the remaining one with long hard drags and thick exhales. "Let's start with today. You're obviously rusty. But your determination pulled you through. The face buster was a good move to ensure you got the win, so was keeping an eye on Knightmask while he was playing on the ropes. You timed your pinfall excellently, but it's the stuff before that that concerns me. You were totally oblivious while Ann was getting a barbed baseball bat. You need a more constant eye on your surroundings. Also, you take punishment very well, but you're going to need to step it up, because you're going to get a severe beating next week."
"Again, the card for next week hasn't been posted." Kate said as a reminder.
"Right, not here it hasn't but in my world it has. I can see a little bit into the future of this world by being in my world at the same time as I am here with you. You'll be facing Ronnie Wilkins. He's a big guy, 6 feet, 220 pounds. most of it muscle. He's going to try beating you with grappling, but he's pretty weak against brawling. He's bigger than Knightmask and Ann Thraxx combined. It's a sure loss unless you train hard this week."
"Jesus Christ! How do you know all this shit?" Kate asked and rubbed her broken and swelling nose. "Who's going to train me this week? You? Ha lady I'll beat your ass so bad your magic won't be able to help you at all!"
Christine lights another cigarette and smiles. "I've got a few ideas in mind and a couple connections I've spoke with booking and transportation, they know that you and I will be providing our own transportation from Chicago to Salt Lake."
"We're not driving, are we?" Kate asked with images of what a 12 hour car ride with Christine would look like.
"Nope, I've chartered a private jet, we'll be taking a long way around. Here's a schedule for your next week's training."
Christine digs in her Prada purse for a black pamphlet with KATE'S HELL WEEK written in crimson letters on the front.
"It's only a page or two long, but it will give you an idea of what you're in for." Christine hands the thin pamphlet to Kate and she relaxes with a fresh cigarette while Kate studies it.
Kate looks at the pamphlet and notices that the ink is very fresh, still wet. Yet there are no smudges. It is as if it was written seconds ago.
It read:
--------------------------------------------------
DAY 1: TOKYO, JAPAN
DAY 2: PYONGYANG, PEOPLE'S DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF KOREA
DAY 3: YAKUTSK, RUSSIAN FEDERATION
DAY 4: KANDAHAR, AFGHANISTAN
DAY 5: ARABIAN SEA
DAY 6: VIRUNGA, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO
DAY 7: SALT LAKE CITY, UNITED STATES (SHOVE IT MATCH)
------------------------------------------------
Kate folded the pamphlet and handed it back to Christine. "Are you fucking serious?"
"Deadly serious, Kate." Christine replied with a full breath of cigarette smoke exiting from her mouth and nose.
"For fuck's sake Christine, I have a match NEXT FUCKING SATURDAY!!! I should be resting. My god damn nose is broken. I need recovery time!"
Christine dragged for a long ten seconds on her cigarette, inhaled and took another equally long drag, inhaling and holding the smoke in her lungs while she replied high on the nicotine rush and pollution of her lungs. "No. You need to get tough, Kate. You need to learn to fight for your life against all odds. You can withstand a great deal of punishment but you need to withstand more or I'm afraid you'll never make it far."
"I never fucking signed up for this!"
"Didn't you? You told me you wanted to be the best wrestler in the XWF. You said you wanted a good life. This week long training will turn you into one of the best competitors alive today, Not just in wrestling, but in all sport and competition in the world across time itself."
"Yeah but, North friggin Korea!?! I'm going to get shot!"
"Honey." Christine takes another long drag and lets the cigarette hang from her mouth as she speaks between drags and exhales through her nose. "North Korea is going to be the easy part. I started it off light so you can get use to the intensity."
"So what exactly is going to keep me on this suicide training week of yours? I mean, what if I just don't show up at the airport?"
Christine lights another cigarette and drags hard as if she had not had a cigarette in weeks, despite the fact she'd been chain smoking throughout the entire discussion. "I have everything under control. You'll be there. It's going to be one of the most intense weeks of your life. But look into yourself and search your true feelings. I think you'll find that deep down you want this. You want to prove to yourself that you are undefeatable, both undefeatable to men and nature itself."
"Hmm. I see your point. Give me your best Christine, cause I'm going to conquer it!"
"Kate, when I'm done with you, you'll have conquered the world." Christine continues to drag hard from her cigarette. "In fact you will be nearly super human."
"So are you going to be with me? Battle zones in Afghanistan I can handle, but your chain smoking, I might not be able to handle."
"I will be there with you Kate, but my smoking will be the least of your concerns."
"OK, so if I have to endure these hell holes, shouldn't I be doing it alone, I can't be dragging you around the whole time."
"You will not be able to see me Kate, even though I'm there. Think of it as if I have an invisibility cloak. Though we'll be in contact by radio." In her hand Christine held her cigarette and a small flesh tone bean shaped object. "Tiny micro transmitters, it uses your bones to conduct vibrations so you can speak and I'll hear you and vice versa. But my body will be present the entire time. But remember no matter how hard you cry for help, I will not help you. This is your battle Kate, your training, you won't become better by begging for help."
"Yeah I know. Bring on your most evil tests, bitch! I'm going to crush them!"
"I know you will. You're my best creation. you're stronger than every one of my other characters. By far more superior in every way." Christine fumbles with her cigarette and Kate notices that the hard driving bitch, and possibly clinically insane, Christine is starting to cry.
"You're crying? Why!?" Kate asked with incredulity.
"I'm sorry." Christine replied while taking another drag. "It's just that you are so beautiful, it's shocking to me how courageous and strong you are." Christine takes another drag as she wipes tears from her eyes. "I love you Kate, more than anything. You are the most beautiful person I have ever known."
"You're not going to try and fuck me are you?" Kate chuckled even though she knew what Christine meant by saying she loved her.
"Maybe... one day, you're not really my type." Christine smiles turning her break down into a joke.
As the two women laugh. the crowd in the arena grows in intense noise.
"Wow." Kate said, "There's no more matches, I wonder what has them all riled up?"
"Shit!" Christine said as she rapidly stubbed out her cigarette next to the ten others she had smoked over the past hour and a half. "You need to see this!"
A handsome young man wearing an XWF polo shirt walked by in the distance.
Christine called to him, "Jake! Bring us a TV with the show on it, please! I'll make it worth your while!"
"What's going on Christine?" Kate asked. "And how do you know his name?"
"You're going to have to really get used to the fact that I really do run everything you experience out of the ring."
Sure enough Jacob returned from a locker room pushing a cart with a flat screen TV on it.
As it drew nearer, Christine lit another cigarette and stood near Kate. "I want you to pay very close attention to what's happening on the screen."
"Okay." Kate replied.
But her confirming words were unheard by Christine as she was walking rapidly to Jacob the XWF crew member.
Christine said to him while Kate stared at the horror developing on the last half of Shove It's show. "Thank you Jacob. And as promised you will be rewarded."
Christine stood on her toes and leaned in to passionately kiss the crew member on the mouth. She then placed his large hand on her breasts and the other on her ass. As the crew member groped Christine while they made out, Christine reached into his pants.
"OH PUKE! Christine, I'm going to be sick here. Knock it off, and come here I have a few questions." Kate said as her eyes darted from the screen to Christine's immodest actions a few feet away.
"Sorry, gorgeous." Christine said to Jacob. "Go along now and I'll be calling you tonight to make good on my promise."
"You are such a fucking slut!" Kate said while watching the show on the TV.
"The rules are different for me here.I explained that. I can't really slut around in my outside life, but here, no rules for me, so i'm going to enjoy myself on the forbidden pleasures."
"That's great, you're still a slut though." Kate replied "Now what the fuck is going on here?"
"The Black Circle. Shane
's gang is exacting their brand of justice." Christine replied.
"Oh my God! is that Ann?" Kate exclaimed while clutching Christine's arm.
On the screen a Ford Mustang rolled forward on a high up stage. On it's hood was Ann Thraxx in a two piece tied to the hood without any chance of escape."
"I'm afraid so. From what I know she picked a fight with the Black Circle, After you won your match the Black Circle's goons got to her and put her in this situation." Christine replied.
a worried appearance flashed over Kate's face as she saw what was happening. "They're going to push the car over the edge!"
Christine watched the screen with the same horror as Kate. She reached for another cigarette and fumbled with her lighter as she lit it.
"This is inhumane!" Kate said as she watched as the Black Circle goons pushed the car over the edge. "Og my Go-" Kate burst into tears as she watch the woman she competed with earlier that evening was crushed beneath tons of steel and glass. Kate turned her face to Christine and rested her head on her shoulder as she sobbed.
"She's not dead." Christine reassured Kate. "I know you were developing a friendship with her, but she picked a fight with the Black Circle and they're merciless fucks."
"That doesn't, *sniff* make it ok."
"I know." Christine said as she slowly shifted her stand from compassionate friend to instructor and mentor. "STAND UP BITCH!" Christine was shouting now like a drill instructor. "QUIT FUCKING CRYING!"
Kate wiped remaining tears away and stopped crying immediately.
"DO YOU SEE WHAT YOU'RE FUCKING UP AGAINST?"
"Yes." Kate barely mustered the weak response.
"LISTEN YOU DUMB BITCH, YOU REPLY WITH FUCKING 'YES MA'AM' OR NO MA'AM"
Kate nodded her head and stood up as straight as she could. "YES MA'AM! I see what I am up against.
"I DON'T THINK YOU DO YOU STUPID PIECE OF SHIT ON A RAT'S CUNT! THE GOD DAMN BLACK CIRCLE NEARLY KILLED YOUR FRIEND ANN TONIGHT! DO YOU KNOW WHY?"
"NO MA'AM" Kate replied loudly before adding. "I'm to stupid to know why, please tell me, I need you to educate me."
Christine had now picked up a wooden a stick on the ground near the mini fridge. In her right hand she held the stick and in the other she held a lit cigarette. She made a formidable appearance.
"YOU'RE DAMN RIGHT YOU'RE TOO STUPID. YOU'RE LUCKY TO HAVE ME AROUND TO TELL YOUR DUMB ASS THE OBVIOUS THINGS. THE REASON THE BLACK CIRCLE HAS NEARLY KILLE ANN IS BECAUSE SHE SAID SOME RUDE THINGS ABOUT THEM AND SHANE
. SHE DIDN'T EVEN THREATEN THEM, BLACK CIRCLE KILLS THE PEOPLE THAT TRY TO THREATEN THEM. ANN WAS DUMPED OVER A LEDGE WITH A CAR BECAUSE SHE SAID SOME DUMB SHIT."
"I understand ma'am!"
"YOU BETTER YOU LITTLE COCKSUCKER. FOR THE NEXT WEEK I WILL BE MAKING YOUR LIFE THE BIGGEST GOD DAMNED HELL YOU CAN EVEN IMAGINE. STICK OUT YOUR PALM"
Kate did as instructed and Christine ashed her cigarette in her open hand.
"WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO WITH THE ASHES?"
"I don't know ma'am." She was thinking about just dropping them on the floor. They were still hot and starting to burn her hand."
"EAT THEM!"
"Yes ma'am!" Kate yelled as she look at the ashes in her hand before finally bowing her head and licking them up. Her face cringed at the taste.
"SWALLOW"
Kate did as told.
"STICK OUT YOUR TONGUE!"
Kate again, did as told as Christine walked closer, Christine dropped her stick, and pinched Kate's tongue with two fingers. Kate's tongue began to bleed from Christine's sharp nails. The Christine pushed the lit end of the cigarette butt into the center of Kate's tongue.
"Ahhhhieeeee!" Kate tried to scream as the cigarette burned her tongue.
After a moment, Christine removed the now extinguished cigarette butt from Kate's tongue. she laid it down gently on Kate's tongue and then released Kate's tongue leaving two deep cuts where her fingernails had dug deep into the muscle tissue.
"SWALLOW THE CIGARETTE BUTT!"
Christine bend over and retrieved her stick.
Kate shook her head no.
*THWOOK!*
Christine had swung the stick with all her might and struck Kate's left cheek. a dark red impression immediately glowed from her skin.
Kate protested with a noise but Christine responded with yet another stroke from the stick on the same cheek.
I'M NOT GOING TO STOP HITTING THOSE PRETTY CHEEKS OF YOURS UNTIL YOU DO AS YOU'RE TOLD." Christine began to relentlessly beat the face of Kate with the wooden rod until welts began to appear and eventually the skin broke open and blood flowed freely from her cheek.
Kate squirmed and made a disgusted face as she tried to make it apparent she swallowed the cigarette butt.
"Okay! Okay! I did it! Please stop hitting me!" Kate protested.
LET'S SEE. OPEN YOUR MOUTH WHORE!"
Kate did as told and Christine looked in her mouth and then stick her hand into Kate's mouth to search for it as f it might be hidden beneath her tongue.
THAT'S A GOOD LITTLE BITCH! YOU DO AS YOUR TOLD, RIGHT LITTLE BITCH?
"yes ma'am! I am an obedient little bitch." Kate replied with humility.
"OK, LITTLE BITCH, YOU SEE THE KIND OF PAIN AND SUFFERING YOU WILL HAVE TO ENDURE TO BECOME A CHAMPION IN THE XWF? THIS ISN'T SOME PUSSY WRESTLING FEDERATION, THIS PLACE IS EXTREME."
"Yes ma'am, I see this is true. Will you train me to be the best in the XWF? Even though I don't deserve it?"
"DO YOU THINK YOU DESERVE TO BE THE BEST, KATE?"
"Ma'am, I don't deserve it right now. But I want to be good enough that in the future I will deserve to be the best. With your help, I may be able to do this. If I can learn to be strong"
THAT IS CORRECT LITTLE BITCH. YOUR TRAINING STARTS TONIGHT Christine lit another cigarette. "But first you need to get that nose fixed and I'm sure you want to check on Ann."
Yes. I would like that." Kate said. 'May I leave?"
"Yes you may. when you're done I'll be at the rear exit outside waiting for you.
"Ok, I'll be as quick as I can." Kate replied but looked stricken and began to look around the room as she clasped her hand over her mouth.
"Just do it on the ground, Kate." Christine said as she watched Kate vomit on the concrete floor. amongst the bile and water was the cigarette butt Christine forced her to swallow earlier. "Cigarette butts are toxic if eaten. Your body knows this, even if you don't know it in your mind. This week Kate, you'll be learning how your body will guide you to where you want to be, even if your mind doesn't know the way."
Kate nodded as her body convulsed another round of vomit.
"Ok, Thank you Christine." Kate said weakly, "Really, I couldn't do it without your help."
"I know, Kate. I'm here to help you. i love you. Now go on, we've got a time table to keep!"
Kate turned away from her manager and mentor and headed back into the main area of the backstage area.