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Thomas Nixon · (11-14-2016)

The homes in center city Philadelphia are architecturally dissimilar to most homes in the United States. Wealth is usually displayed through the size and luxury of a person’s home. Beverly Hills is made up of large, beautiful structures that demonstrate an expensive contemporary look. Other expensive homes out in rural areas aren’t as modern, but the owners own acres and acres of land. The most expensive homes in Philadelphia are small row homes crammed next to each other without any type of yard or exterior space.

Thomas Nixon lives on a one way cobblestone street in the old city area near center city. Looking at the exterior of the building and the stone roads, you would think you were somewhere in Europe. The building is painted red giving it an aged look, which is fitting because the home was likely built over a century ago.

At its widest point, his home is approximately two and a half queen size beds wide. The two story building has a small living space, dining room, a half bathroom, and a kitchen on the lower level. The upper floor features two large bedrooms and a full bath.

Nixon resides in one of the two large bedrooms, which he has turned into an entertainment center of sorts. A brand new Samsung sixty inch TV rests on a wooden entertainment system that also contains high quality speakers. A leather sofa is placed opposite of the TV, which Thomas lies across with a remote in hand.

The dark room is only illuminated by the blue screen of the television set. With a click of the remote, the VHS inserted inside the entertainment center begins to play.

“So even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.” The voice of Martin Luther King Jr. echoes through the speakers of the room.

In only a few moments, Nixon is lost in thought, thinking of the past and the future and what they have in store. Reflection overcomes Nixon. This historic speech brings back memories that are more relevant to Nixon now than they ever were.

As an eighteen year old, Thomas Nixon was understanding of his purpose within the tribe of lizard people. He was to be an ambassador of sorts. A human that could be trusted, and with the trust of the lizard people, he could bridge the gap between the two species.

But his role is not so simple, or at least it wasn’t in the past. Martin Luther King’s speech is relevant to the lizard’s cause for more than one reason. At the time, King was fighting for the rights of African American citizens in the United States of America. His speech calls for an end of oppression that only existed due to a superficial tradition.

Blacks were discriminated against because they always had been. If my parents hated them, why shouldn’t I? King had to make the case that they also deserved liberty and rights. That’s the same case that Nixon making now to the XWF universe about my people.

The comparison between King’s struggles and Nixon’s current endeavor are simple, even obvious, but their other connection runs far deeper.

{When women fought for their rights to vote, they didn’t fight for the rights of other minorities. Women felt like it was their time to fight for their cause. They would not be able to win both of these civil struggles at the same time. They essentially told the minority communities to wait their turn because it was the time for women’s issues to be in the spotlight.

When the African Americans fought for their freedoms, they deprived the lizard people from taking center stage to earn their rights. In the heat of the 1950s and 1960s, the lizard people were in prime position to make their candidacy as citizens. Their integration was possible, the right people were in power, only the typical Americans would have to be convinced, not the government.

But they faced an issue they hadn’t expected, all the spotlight was on race relations, and there was no way that lizard people could gain the support of black citizens when they were battling for their rights.

What the lizard people needed was an opportunity; their timing was simply inconvenient.

After decades and decades, it seems that the time has finally come. I want to be the guiding hand that brings the lizard people into the public eye. My opportunities to reach the spotlight in XWF perfectly coincide with the lizard people’s chance to earn freedom and liberty.

At this upcoming Savage, I will have the first of many opportunities to gain publicity and attention from the world around us. I’m competing for an opportunity to wrestle for the XWF Television Championship, a belt that is highly competitive and skyrockets athletes to the top of the card.

Last week, I came out on top against Alexis Riot. Sure, some guy interfered and almost cost me the match, but I was able to persevere when everyone thought I was done. When he draped Alexis over me, the crowd was sure the match was over. But I kicked out, and I came back with a burst of energy and pulled out the shocking win.

I need to ride this momentum to the top because this match actually has high stakes. If I’m pinned, I’m thrown out of title contention. That’s three short seconds to lose a prime time spot at Wild Card.

I can’t let that happen. I can’t let down everyone I know and love, past and present. Hodiah, Semiazas, Charun, Xaphan, and Baal. I will deliver justice for all of my kin because they helped me get where I am today, even if it is too late for some of them to see my accomplishments.

This match is a true test for me to establish myself, as a wrestler and a leader. Jervis Cottonbelly, Benito Angelo, and Guppy Parsh have all aligned with me, and I need to prove to them that they have chosen the right man to stand behind. I know that all of them have sincere motives, but they need to know that I will always fight my heart out when I’m in the ring. I’ve made progress by being here and simply talking about the oppression of lizards, but I haven’t made any tangible steps towards equality or even acceptance.

Winning the television title will let people know that I’m not a joke, but to get there I need to take on Blue Gator and Jakob Davis.

Now I don’t know much about these guys, and I’m sure they feel the same way about me. None of us have a huge resume in XWF, and I don’t think I have a reason to fear stepping toe to toe with them. But wrestling two foes without preparation is a grave error.

What I do have is a simple strategy. I’m going to stay as composed as possible and only take calculated risks. The stipulation is both a relief and reason to worry. I don’t need to win. I just need to keep my shoulders off the mat and stay away from submissions. But on the other hand, I want to prove that I’m a star athlete. But I’m worried that if I try to make a point I’ll end up taking the fall. It’s not unreasonable to worry about that, and with two opponents instead of one there is bound to be chaos at some point or another.

Fuck it. I guess I’ll do what every wrestler has to do in the end. I’ll step into the ring and fight tooth and nail with these guys. I’m going to limit the risks of taking the fall as much as I can, but when it comes to XWF, there is only so much I can control.

I have the passion to fight through whatever these two fuckers throw at me, and to be honest with myself, I’m excited to experience this type of match. We have high stakes and no rules. If Blue Gator wants to crack me across the knees with a chair, then he can fucking do it, but I’m going to thrive in that environment.

Once I start to feel the pain and the aches, I know it’s time to kick myself into second gear. I’m going to be full of adrenaline; I’ll let my heart explode in my chest before I stay down for the three because when I’m suffering I’m going to channel my memories. From Hodiah to Benito, I will not let anyone down at Savage. From my followers to the people that brought me up, everyone watching me wrestle will have a smile on their face when they hear that I’m advancing to the Television Championship match at Wild Card.}

“And when this happens, when we allow freedom to ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual: ‘Free at last! Free at last! Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!’”

{And with the win, I will be one step closer to shouting those words. I can imagine it now, some day in the not so distant future, lizard people in their true forms will roam the streets. They will walk from their home to the store without dawning a façade that hides their true identity. We will no longer live in fear, in shame.

With the title belt brings grand opportunities for me to reach the public, and that is a small victory on the long road to acceptance. But all of this starts with making it through the triple threat bout at Savage. Then at the end of the road, we will all gather together ‘free at last!’}

Nixon sits up from the couch, tapping a button on the remote to halt the raucous applause after Martin Luther King’s speech.

The scene fades out as Nixon extends his arms outwards with a big yawn, acknowledging that he needs some rest so he can prepare for the big match on Saturday.

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