For all that Micheal Graves had said about the Universal Title match, it did not seem like he was taking Raion Kido seriously. Moreover, it seemed like he was judging the young Lion solely by his outward image, and that which he had chosen to portray. Not only had he called the Saint of Athena’s life a lie, he had chosen to attack his very core.

“An otaku loser, he calls me. As if I did not hold the prize of which he has been dreaming for five years! As if had not made a greater impact that he has ever made in the entire time he wrestled in the XWF!”

*CRACK!*

Rock splits into pieces as a hammer impacts, once and again, against a huge stone formation. The thoughts drop, one by one, from inside of the head of the hammer’s wielder - none other than Raion himself, clad in a simple black tank top and faded, dust-covered blue jeans, as he takes the metal to the stone.

“As if he wasn’t begging me to pick a match stipulation that favored him! But then again - he cannot complain. It’s time for him to show just how far he can go!”

*CRACK!*

One more time the hammer hits the stone, and the thoughts stream from the Lion’s head - as concentrated in his work as he was in the upcoming challenge.

“And after we’re done, I’m going to see him walk away to that Madness desk once more. Because I cannot allow myself to fail here. Not with Relentless and Mark Flynn a month away!”

*CRACK!*

Micheal Graves had come to challenge, but the Lion knew where his sight truly must be, and there was no way he would take his sight off it - the two greatest winners of the Cannabis Cup, both in the XWF, fighting for the ultimate prize.

This was a rendezvous with destiny, and not even death itself would keep him from it.

“And that means Micheal Graves must fall!”

*CRACK!*

Only three hours away from New York City is the Ace of Diamonds Mine and Campground, a mining campsite for tourists, where brave adventurers try their luck to find treasures among the rocky landscape, or simply to camp in the wilderness of the mine, and here is where the Lion is now found.

In the scorching heat of the early afternoon, the young Saint of Athena draws a heavy sigh, then sits on another stone opposite the one he’s been mining, drenched in sweat and muscles aching from the labor he has been performing. He brushes his hand against his forehead to wipe out some beads of sweat.

“Nothing coming up so far, eh?”

A jovial, elderly man, one of the owners of the family that has operated this mine for more than 50 years, sits beside the XWF Universal Champion, looking at him rather amusedly. The Lion gives him a glance, still gasping for breath, before responding with an amiable, if awkward, smile.

“Not anything so far, sir. But then again, gold wouldn’t have the worth it has, had it been that easy to find, would it?”

“Well spoken, kid. Gold has been a staple of humanity for centuries, even millennia. People think it’s just pretty and shiny, but it’s always been so much more.”

“I know, sir. No other metal is as precious as gold.”

“I mean more than just precious metals, son. Gold is also called a noble metal. Not only is it rare to find, it’s also very resistant. It doesn’t rust or dissolve. And I like to think it is the same with people, too - the ones that can resist, and don’t turn rotten over time, they’re also hard to find, especially these days.”

The Lion nods gracefully, seeing the old man’s point.

“I see that often, sir, in my line of work. Wrestling is a very cut-throat business and more than once I’ve had to deal with people rotten to their very core. It just so happens I go against one next, as well, and so I must prove my worth once more.

Just like gold.”

“Oh? What’s this guy you’re supposed to beat up like?”

Raion now takes his hand to his chin, thinking for a while before providing his answer.

“Well, he has a thing for shock value. All he does is geared toward that. He’s unrepentantly confessed to wanting to have sex with another wrestler much younger than him, although I’m not sure how that is related to me at all, or why anyone needs to know that… he also carries a sex toy for some reason, and lately he’s taken up promoting some crypto-currency.”

At this final line, the mine owner scoffs, contempt visible on his face.

“Hah! As if some virtual “currency” could ever be worth as much as gold! That’s one thing gold will always have over them - no matter how much the value of those things rises, it always drops catastrophically. Gold never has that problem, because it’s actually tangible. That’s why gold is always the best investment!”

“It just so happens that’s what happened with this guy as well. His value dropped considerably after he was last seen in my company.

Not that it was ever that high.”

The mine owner laughs amusedly at the Lion’s remark.

“Certainly explains why he’s into that crap!”

“Maybe, sir. I just think he didn’t think this through completely. He’s so irritated at me being the champion of the place he’s been for years, he’s railing at my entire appearance. Dropped a “yellow” comment at me too, but at least that’s lighter than the jokes better people than him made, and I beat those for that too.

It’s always the same thing. Because I’m a Japanese boy that likes Japanese comics, and that’s an embarrassment to someone like him.”

“You’re not the one trying to groom younger women, are you? Or carrying a penis with nails around?”

Raion’s eyes go wide at that remark, and vigorously shakes his head no, his wild hair now fluttering to and fro.

“I swear by Athena that’s not what I do, sir.”

“Good! We all have our little fictions we like, yours is comics, his is cryptocurrencies and sex jokes. But from my point of view, the difference is at least you believe in yours, and act upon your beliefs. You don’t seem to be the trouble-making type, you carry yourself with dignity, work your hardest, and people actually see your worth.

Otherwise, you wouldn’t be where you are.

And seeing you dig in there, I saw the measure of a man. A man that can stand against adversity, a man whose spirit won’t decay. A noble man - like the noble metal that is gold.”

The young Japanese wrestler looks at the man in the eye, and stands up once more, extending his hand.

“Thanks for that, sir, and thanks for your time. But I’m rested enough already, and I need to find that gold!”

Taking up his hammer again, Raion approaches the stone formation again, and takes the metal to the stone once more.

*CRACK!*

“HA!”

*CRACK!*

“HI-YA!”

*CRACK!*

So concentrated is the Lion in his labor, that he barely notices the old man calling him out again.

“Uh, kiddo! Hey! Kiddo!”

The barest echo of the old man’s last calling reaches his ears, and so Raion turns around, somewhat distracted.

“Uh? Yes?”

“You do realize you’re wearing a heavy gold belt, right?”

After a double take, the Lion looks down at his own waist, only to find the XWF Universal Title belt has been there all along. In contrast to the shining gold that he wears, his face now turns a heavy shade of red.

“Oh! M-my bad, sir. I guess I didn’t need to find the gold after all!”

The two men look at each other complicitly, then break into a hearty laugh.

“There you have it, son. Sometimes the gold is within you all along!”

The Lion now sets his hammer on the rock, and hops down from the formation.

“Maybe so, sir, but I got the gold without, through the gold within. I’m not yet ready to let go of the gold without.”

Now the Lion approaches another piece of gold - the Golden Cloth that he always dons, the symbol of his valor, and the proof of being a Saint of Athena.

“And no amount of crypto shilling shall ever be worth this gold.”

It is finally time to address Michael Graves, and so the Lion reaches into his Gold Cloth…


“Gold is said to be a noble metal, and that is one of the reasons for its value.”

His golden armor glinting in the sun, the XWF Universal Champion begins with a clenched fist, his expression serious. Micheal Graves had spouted enough nonsense already, and he would not subject the XWF Universe to endure any more.

“It is rare, and found in nature by itself, in its raw form, without being mixed with other minerals. It’s malleable and shiny, and doesn’t rust, corrode, or decay.

It is only natural, therefore, that a noble metal such as this be made into the symbol that a wrestling champion must carry, for they should reflect exactly the same qualities of the metal from which his belt is made.

And that is why, ladies and gentlemen, a title belt that a champion carries must be captured, and defended, with the absolute best of the ability that one can give. That is also one of the reasons, among several others, for my decision that this match be Last Man Standing. Because it is about value, and about those very things I’ve just stated.

This is meant to be a title match on a Main Event of the XWF’s flagship show, and every single word that exits my mouth is meant to reflect just that. Just as it was before I won this title, just as every time I have appeared on the XWF Universe airwaves reflected the exact importance of the match that I was to contest.

And as I distinctly remember saying, this duty, which should be common for every wrestler regardless of station, is even more pressing for a Champion, and even more so, when said Champion holds the top title in the promotion. Now, ladies and gentlemen, I want you to put yourselves in the position of Micheal Graves, for I too was in it not so long ago, and I’ll be damned if I shall ever forget. Try to picture yourselves in his shoes, and think about what I shall say next.”

Raion thrusts one fist into the camera, almost touching its lens. His voice is as metallic as the armor he wears, and the glint in his eyes is just as hard as the rock behind him.

It was time to finally show Micheal Graves the mistakes he had made, in mocking the Lion’s identity, and in underestimating him, as other, better wrestlers, had done before.

And for the cosmos to burn.


“You’re going against one of the most dominant rising stars of the XWF today. You’re going against the one man that wrested this Universal Title from the grip of ALIAS, over perennial talent Dolly Waters, and arguably one of the best Television Champions this company has seen in Charlie Nickles.

Not only that - you’re going against the winner of the 2022 Leap of Faith match, a match among the toughest in the entirety of the XWF.

And knowing all this, with all that lies beneath it, the only concern in your mind is being a transitional champion? You’re worried about a flash in the pan title reign!?”

Lips peeled and canines showing, breathing in with all his might, the Lion bellows out a roar that echoes throughout the wilderness and the rock formations around him.

“Graves, answer me this before everything else: Are you a complete imbecile, or was that golden potato you were babbling about sprouted!?”

It was one thing to think whatever one thought of Raion Kido, but he still was the XWF Universal Champion, and had obtained the title by beating the biggest names in the entire company.

Micheal Graves had never been counted among those names, and now, not only did he dare say he was not impressed, which could demonstrably be proven wrong, but he had also discounted an easy win against Raion Kido himself.

And the Lion would not lose the prize he had labored so hard, and endured so much, to obtain. Let alone against someone that had the gall to make that assumption.

“In case you haven’t noticed, or worse, that you’re doing your best to deny it, allow me to bring you back to reality: There is still a Champion in front of you, a Champion defending the title that he won in the biggest match of his seven-month career. A Champion whose reign has just started, and whose first defense is you.

And not only that. You’re facing a Champion that remembers the one little thing you ever said to him, and made it his life effort to prove you wrong.

How do you think I’m coming into this match, Graves!?”

One more raging bellow, followed by the silence of the mine as the Lion lets the question linger.

Did Micheal Graves fail to realize just who he was facing? Or he did, and he just failed to care?

Either way, that mattered little to Raion Kido, for there was only one thing to do - come Wednesday Night Warfare, the Dark Warrior would be enlightened when the Lion’s fangs sank into him.

“Add to what I said last time that this loss you’re going to suffer is only the beginning. You’re the foundation of my reign, and that which you’re assuming is a done deal, these things that you’ve so foolishly assumed before beating me, are the very reason why the Lightning Plasma will render you incapable of so much as twitching once you and I are done.

Because that about which you’ve only been thinking is exactly what I am living at this very moment!

I’ve been preparing for this, Graves, and I made sure to show that the first time I addressed you. Because I know what Mark Flynn is going to bring up when he and I face at Relentless. Long have I had to hear him and the partner he betrayed about the tired Cho-KING line, but the first time we faced, well, I had his measure in the Leap of Faith, and at Relentless, it’s going to be his turn to eat his words - just as Bourbon and Nickles had to do, and just as you shall after I’m done with you on Warfare. I know very well the stages in which I’ve failed, but all of that is rendered worthless now when the entire world saw me succeed at an event much greater than anything in which you’ve ever partaken!

That’s the magnitude of that which I must defend, more than this very title itself, and it will not be taken down the first time I fight to keep it, not in any edition of Wednesday Night, and not by the likes of you. And no amount of misplaced confidence you may have shall ever change that.

So bring all the bluster and bravado you can muster, Graves. Whine all you like about me and the XWF management. Come and spend your impotent wrath. Call yourself as Xtreme as you want to be, but know that, when you step into a Last Man Standing match, you step into the domain of the Lion. You may not want to outwrestle me, or to impress, but that is of no concern to me. What I’m coming to do is to defend my domain, and to prove my superiority - and that entails, whatever the means, your utter destruction.”

Was that not, in fact, why he had chosen this to be a Last Man Standing match? It wasn’t for his own advantage, it was because it entails exactly what Raion Kido has always espoused. No matter the punishment, no matter the adversity, a Saint of Athena would always rise.

Micheal Graves might put this off as something from the comics, but this is the creed by which the Lion has always lived, and why he chose to be known by that name. What other way was there to prove the truth behind his words, his entire way of life - the very power of the universe that burns within his body?

And aside from this, there is one more reason for which the Dark Warrior must fall. One more reason that concerns not just the XWF Universal Champion, but the XWF in its entirety.

“Oh, but I’m not done here, ladies and gentlemen! There’s something else that has caught my attention! Speaking of this newfound self-belief with which our dear Dark Warrior has filled his mouth, I can’t help but notice that Mr. Gravy Roast has gone into awful pains to attempt to discredit my image! Alas, it looks like he failed to look in the mirror before he decided to open his mouth. Maybe I’m thinking this too hard, but I find the irony of someone that goes by the name of the Dark Warrior too great to go unnoticed.

Whatever you think of my place as a Gold Saint of Athena, at least I’m not as bland and as basic as to call myself the Dark Warrior. Maybe you should look at what you call the funny pages for some inspiration of your own, Graves, and come up with something that can actually elicit the people’s interest.

But as if that were not enough, he even goes so far as to make fun of my move! Maybe Gravy missed his biology lessons, which, considering his school life, is not that far of a stretch, but it’s not a breast, whether male or female, that the Lightning Bolt strikes. I’m pretty sure it is meant to hit the heart, not any other part of the body.

Of course, this is a man that has made a habit of carrying a sex toy shaped like a man’s member, so I suppose I should not have expected any better. At least Nickles was somewhat entertaining when making sex jokes. At least Bobby Bourbon makes an effort to be not just entertaining, but actually scathing.

Alas, Micheal Graves never thought to take notes while he was in the Brotherhood of Bastards, which might explain why he doesn’t run with them now, and why he isn’t even worthy of them.”

A horizontal slash in the air with the Lion’s hand follows these words. Bitter as his contest with the Brotherhood of Bastards had been, at least they had proven, for a moment, to have had the best of him.

But in the end, he had finally overcome their greatest members.

And after what he had endured, a mere reject like Michael Graves would not be the one to have his measure.

“But I digress. The most important thing here is that our Dark Warrior seems to hate with a passion the fact that Raion Kido, and not anyone else, is the XWF Universal Champion. Is Micheal Graves actually afraid that losing to Raion Kido will make him look bad? I understand that nobody expects a lot from the Dark Warrior as of late, but this statement sinks deeper than the Mariana Trench, or, more appropriately, Graves’ own career after his loss to the Chameleon.

Have we really sunk this low, Graves? What shall we say towards the people that have faced me and that I’ve defeated, bigger and better names that you have ever been? What does that say about those names? What does that say about your own victory vs. Centurion?

I recall saying last time that losing here would be an insult to the people with which I fought the Cannabis Cup match, but you have already insulted them more than I could ever have - and I owe them that much for this insult to be repaid.”

One more time does the Lion display his canines, a ferocious snarl now visible on his face.

Let it never be said that Raion Kido did not take the responsibility that being Universal Champion entailed - to carry the banner and the honor of the company as if it were his own.

To elevate the XWF to the highest reaches of the universe, if need be.

If Micheal Graves would go so far as to insult him for being what he is, and drag the rest of the roster with this insult, then the Lion would respond in the only way possible.

Obliteration.

“But as if Micheal Graves did not insult the best in the entire XWF roster in an attempt to attack me, his biggest problem is that which I represent. Because of course, like absolutely nobody has noticed before, this is Raion Kido we’re talking about, the otaku loser that thinks an ‘80s Anime is real - an embarrassment to the XWF, to have him as Universal Champion.

So much an embarrassment, in fact, that This is Awesome Promotions came running to extend the company a Golden Ticket for the World Series of Wrestling just so the XWF could give it to him.

So very embarrassing, is this Saint of Athena, that the Casino Kid Justin York came with an offer to the Night of the Main Events just for him.

So terribly embarrassing I am, in fact, that Chris Page himself entered War Games just for the hope to face me, and when that did not happen, he booked himself against me at his upcoming January event!

By Athena and all the gods at once, how embarrassing, how bad it looks for the XWF to have Raion Kido as its biggest asset! Raion Kido has done more for the XWF as a wrestler than Micheal Graves has behind a desk, truly something incomparable to the number of heads that he claims he turns every time he pops up from the oblivionin which he belongs.”

This time, the Lion scoffs, rolling his eyes as if he had heard enough - and indeed, he has. This was foolishness of the highest order, and he would not brook it anymore than Graves’ offenses.

There was a wealth of evidence to show what the repercussions of his victory had been, and to him, these were badges of honor. And it was time to show their worth to the rest of the world, and to the Dark Warrior.

When he gazes upon the camera again, he points a golden finger in a swift motion, almost cutting the air around him as he extends his arm.

“But of course, this is Micheal Graves, the Dark Whiner, holder of golden potatoes, time traveler in portable toilets, so let’s not let the truth get in the way of a stupid story. You wring your hands and rend your garments, going into pains to describe how you failed to capture this title and all the names that came before you, and here you are complaining that I’ve done what you never did to acquire it. Because you’re not the only one here that went through adversity, Graves. I’ve even mentioned them in my last address, and made it a point to state that even those were high-note matches.

I didn’t flounder in the card of the Savage I lost to Nickles - it was a Main Event in my fourth match in the XWF. I didn't languish in the obscurity you so much hate during the March Madness tournament - I was at the very event finals, just as I was the runner-up this last Pay-Per-View. I didn’t fail more often than not - even with this behind me, I’ve succeeded! I’ve lost an entire total of four times, and have won almost three times that amount! And each of those losses I attributed nothing to the XWF office. Rather, I attributed those to my opponents, and I’ve kept them fresh in my mind for when the time came to actually beat them.

Meanwhile, every failure you’ve ever had you’ve attributed to management, and almost the entirety of your pitiful, miserable messages are directed more to them than to me.

So answer me this, Graves - when you’re unconscious on the mat, utterly unable to do anything but lie still in there like the rotting corpse you are, and fail to answer a count of ten, who in management shall you hold responsible for your own next failure? Theo Pryce for inducting me into the Trilogy? Chris Page for having given you the chance to embarrass yourself further? Or Vinnie Lane for some unrelated reason?

You know what? Forget it, Graves, don’t bother answering. It’s a rhetorical question. I’m going to do you a kindness you don’t deserve, and provide you with a nice scapegoat on which to place the blame. In case you fail to put the blame on yourself, blame your defeat and your next failed Universal Title match on me. Because I’m going to ensure that the sole reason you fail to win this match is because I was better than you in every single, solitary way.”

Raion bangs his right fist against his left palm, the sound of the clash resonating through the emptiness of the mine. This time there would be no excuses, no management to blame.

Nothing but the Dark Warrior’s own failure, and victory for the Lion.

Victory obtained through ultimate superiority.

“Of course, you know this much already, you’ve made it patently clear, even though you do your best to hide it under a thin layer of pretended disdain, but I’m not just talking about any skill or moveset. I’m talking about the value of it all, the motives I have to send you to the grave that makes up your name.”

And if you are actually capable of understanding that, Mr. Gravy Roast, answer me this further. What will happen once you somehow wake up to see me carry the belt on my waist once more? Will you go back to your desk and gnaw at old wounds until your next change, or will you traverse the hard road as I have, and as every XWF wrestler is meant to do?

Because see, Mr. Dark Whiner, as short as it so far might have been, my road has not been easy. I wasn’t anointed when I came to this company. I came to the XWF like any other wrestler, and I earned every single opportunity here through my own work and merit, and I was thrust into the very spotlight from the moment I beat Xavier Lux, while your loss to Nickles was just one more defense of the Television Title.”

At this moment, the Lion grins his usual grin, that of the predator that knows he has cornered his prey, and all that remains is to go for the kill.

Michael Graves had started this story by calling his life a lie. It was time for Raion Kido to demonstrate several truths, not least of which was the worth that he had come to carry.

And if this failed to penetrate the Dark Warrior’s thick skull, there would be no further mistake once Wednesday Night Warfare was over.

“That, Graves, is called value. That’s what I bring to the XWF table, and that’s why I’ve earned this title. It cannot be measured in numbers, but it’s worth more than that BarnCoin you go into painful extremes to peddle. Because with me, people know exactly what they’re going to get. Because unlike your sorry hide, Mr. Dark Warrior, I don’t walk away when things don’t go my way.

And because, as you’re going to witness with your own eyes in this Last Man Standing match, the only way to put me down is to send me to the grave, just like your own last name.

For as long as there is life in a Saint of Athena, they shall always keep getting up!”

Again the Lion lets out a deafening roar that echoes throughout the mine.

This is, after all, the creed by which he lives, and it was time for Micheal Graves to see just how deeply that creed ran within the soul of the young Saint of Athena.

Raion Kido had given his warning, and the time had finally come for the Dark Warrior to fall.

“I’m done talking, Graves. Madison Square Garden, New York City, Wednesday Night Warfare. Prepare for the value of BarnCoin to drop lower than your character, and that’s already saying a lot, after a count to ten. Shill it as hard as you can throughout, though it will serve for nothing. Prepare for this otaku loser to show you just what everyone else that decided to attack me that way experienced - their absolute inability to withstand the strength of the Lion’s fangs.

Prepare to go back to your role behind the scenes, and know that the standard of the XWF wrestling standard has soared through the skies thanks to the name and the work of the Lion.

And prepare, ultimately, to be the foundation of the title defense series of Raion Kido. Take solace in that fact when - and it is when - you finally fall, you’re not going to fall to an otaku loser. You’re going to fall to the XWF Universal Champion, and its greatest talent, undoubtedly, to come in 2022. And maybe then you shall know what it truly takes to face a Gold Saint of Athena.

Because when the dust has settled and the smoke has cleared, the XWF Universe shall finally see that no amount of excuses, false confidence, and crypto schemes…

… shall ever match the value of gold.”

Fade to black.